A Rose By Any Other Name
by textingandscones
Summary: What would happen if Rose Tyler was never trapped in Pete's World? My take on series 3, 4 and the Specials with Rose on board.
1. Doomsday?

The breach in the Void dragged every last victim into its depths, the gateway to the Void burning a pure hot white against the wall in Torchwood Tower. Believe it or not, this day had started out as any other completely normal trip to see Rose Tyler's mother, Jackie, and somehow had turned into a tremendous battle between the Daleks and the Cyberman. They had all been sucked away into the Void, and only two more beings remained who could be taken. The Doctor clutched his Magna-Clamp tightly, holding on for dear life and watching helplessly as Rose started to lose her grip. She was mere seconds from letting go and being trapped forever. Her frightened gaze met the Doctor's and suddenly, the cogs in his brain started to spin out of control. _Save Rose... _He had precious seconds to act. Without thinking twice, he carelessly thrust his hand into his pocket and pulled out the trusty sonic screwdriver, flicking it to the highest setting and whirring it at the machines controlling the Ghost Shift, and the Void. The machine sent bright sparks flying in all directions, the levers snapping up and the Void disappearing. Rose couldn't hold on any longer and she fell to the ground, slumping and shaking like a leaf. The Doctor quickly untangled himself from the Magna-Clamp and ran over to Rose, crouching and gathering her into his arms. "Rose? Rose?"

"D-Doctor…" Rose finally opened her eyes after a few minutes, looking a little dazed, the world spinning around her. She wasn't dead. She wasn't in the Void. The Doctor did… something… and he was there, holding her, so he must've done something right. She looked up into his concerned eyes and a few tears fell down her cheeks, which he quickly wiped away. "You saved me…" She could've been snatched away from everything that ever mattered to her. She quickly wrapped her arms around him and held onto him for dear life, afraid that he might disappear if she let go.

"I thought I was going to lose you…" The Doctor mumbled, his voice thick with emotion as he held the woman he cared about deeply, helping her to her feet.

"I thought _I_ was going to lose _you_…" Rose murmured, finally regaining a little composure. "But you'd never let that happen…" She glanced at the eerie wall that once held the Void, a lump forming in her throat. She'd left her family on the other side. Of course, she made that choice, but still… she didn't have much of a goodbye. "Doctor?"

"Come with me." The Doctor took her hand and led her through the mess of Torchwood Tower, back to the TARDIS. He'd immediately noticed how devastated Rose was over losing her family. Of course, he had felt the same way, losing his family in the Time War. He didn't get a goodbye, so he was determined to give Rose one. Searching the universe for any remaining breaches only took a few moments, and harnessing the power of a supernova, he was able to transmit a signal between their universe and the parallel one. Rose watched carefully through the signal, her heart beginning to ache as she saw her mother, her father and Mickey. She tried to find the right words to begin a sentence. She was going to lose them forever. What was she supposed to say? Nice knowing you?

"Oh, don't cry, numpty…" Jackie murmured fondly as she smiled at a hologram of her daughter. "We all survived, didn't we?"

"But…" Rose felt tears welling up in her eyes. "I'll never… see y-you again…"

"You never know, ol' clever clogs over there might figure something out," Jackie glanced at the Doctor and rolled her eyes. "Look after her, okay?" The Doctor gave a little nod and she felt reassured. "All that matters to me is your safety, sweetheart. Don't forget that I love you."

"I love y-you too…" A tear slowly rolled down Rose's cheek. "And you, Dad… and Mickey… I love all of you so much…"

"We all love you too," Pete offered a soft, emotional smile. "We're so proud of you, too."

"Hey, don't think of us too much, okay?" Mickey smiled sadly when Rose started to cry. "You're in the TARDIS with that idiot and I know you'll have fun. We're home and we know you're safe."

"We'll see you soon, yeah?" Jackie's voice was comforting. She was losing her daughter but she had to let go eventually.

"Y-yeah," Rose mumbled. "I love you." The signal cut off, and Rose buried her head in her hands, having a good sob. The Doctor held her in a comforting embrace, knowing his words were useless, and she just needed someone to hold her. He eventually glanced around, pausing and blinking in complete surprise as he spotted a random woman in a white wedding dress with bright ginger hair, standing over by the door. Where the bloody hell did she come from? "What?"

The woman turned around, looking bewildered and scared. "Oh!" She stared at the Doctor and Rose.

"_What?_"

"Who are you?" The woman questioned angrily. "Where am I, eh? What the hell is this place?"

"_What?!"_


	2. The Runaway Bride, Chapter 1

It was a perfectly normal day for a wedding in Chiswick. The sun was shining, the birds were singing happily and Donna Noble stood in the church on the biggest, most important day of her life. She stepped down the aisle, arm in arm with her father, Geoff. Her ginger hair fell down her back in soft elegant curls, her white dress making her look just like an angel. Her heart was thumping with anticipation. Nothing in the entire world could ruin her perfect day. This day was all about_ her_. The musician at the organ started to play a soft tune and the congregation stood up. Donna smiled blissfully at Lance, her fiancé, the man she loved without a single doubt. Her friends and family all looked upon Donna with appreciation and happiness. About halfway up the aisle, Donna started to feel a tingly sensation which she assumed was due to the nerves, but the faces of her loved ones fell as they all noticed a strong golden glow surrounding her. It took Donna a moment to notice, but she let out a terrible scream upon realisation and felt herself being whisked away, disappearing in a puff of golden dust, which shot up through the ceiling. Her family and friends looked around in utter confusion. Donna was gone.

In fact, Donna reappeared in some weird sort of building… was it a building? It looked more like a… no, that's ridiculous. It looked kind of like a… _spaceship? _Something out of a sci-fi film. Who were those two people over there? Why wasn't she still at the church? The skinny bloke in the suit stared at Donna and she looked back at him, bewildered. "Oh!"

"_What?_"

"Who are you?" Donna questioned quickly. Who the hell were they? Were they going to hurt her? "Where am I, eh? What the hell is this place?"

"_What?_" The Doctor looked at Donna, at Rose, at the console, looking desperately for some sort of explanation. Random people don't just _appear_ in the TARDIS! "You can't do that, I wasn't… we're in _flight_! That is… that is physically _impossible_! How did…?"

"Tell me where I am!" Donna interrupted in a commanding voice. She was angry and frightened now. "I demand you tell me right now, where am I?"

"Inside the TARDIS." Rose answered, trying to give Donna a comforting smile, but she wasn't having any of it.

"The what?" Donna growled. That… _word_ certainly wasn't in the Dictionary. She never heard of it before. They were both talking gibberish.

"The TARDIS." The Doctor repeated in an irritated voice, feeling a little annoyed with this woman already. He turned to the console, keeping Rose close.

"The what?" Donna took a few steps forward to keep his attention on her. She wanted an explanation, and she wanted to be taken home.

"It's called the TARDIS." The Doctor muttered, growing impatient.

"That's not even a proper word. You're just saying things!" Donna shouted angrily. What the hell was a TARDIS? That didn't even make sense to her!

"How did you get in here?" Rose asked softly, trying to calm Donna. The worst thing they could do right now was argue with each other.

"Well, _obviously_, when you both kidnapped me! Who was it? Who's paying you? Is it Nerys? Oh my God, she's finally got me back. This has got Nerys written all over it."

The Doctor gaped at Donna with an exasperated look. "Who the hell is Nerys?"

"_Your_ best friend!" Donna growled, expecting some trick cameras to come out any moment and reveal the whole thing as a sick joke.

"Hold on, wait a minute…" The Doctor finally realised that… this woman was in a _wedding dress!_ "What're you dressed like that for?"

"I'm going ten pin bowling," Donna replied sarcastically, going into a full rage and yelling. "WHY DO YOU THINK, DUMBO? I WAS HALFWAY UP THE AISLE! I've been waiting all my life for this. I was just seconds away! And then you… I dunno, you drugged me or something!"

"We haven't done anything!" Rose protested, frowning. Even she was beginning to find this woman annoying.

"We're having the police on you! Me and my husband, as soon as he is my husband, we're gonna sue the living backside off ya!" Donna turned and noticed the doors. _Freedom_. She rushed over to them, the Doctor looking up in alarm and hurrying after her, Rose quickly following behind.

"No, wait a minute! Wait a minute! Don't!" The Doctor yelled, but it was too late, Donna had already opened the doors and looked out into deep space. The pink supernova outside was swirling beautifully against the inky black backdrop of space. Her mouth fell wide open. "You're in space. Outer Space. This is my… spaceship. It's called the TARDIS."

"How am I breathing?" Donna murmured, in a much quieter voice. She was finally defeated. Either that was _really_ clever CGI, she thought, or they were actually telling the truth.

"The TARDIS is protecting us."

"Who are you? Both of you?" Donna took a moment to glance at the Doctor and Rose. A couple, maybe? A couple travelling in a spaceship? Not exactly what she expected to be seeing on the day of her wedding.

"I'm the Doctor, and this is Rose Tyler," The Doctor replied, bringing Rose close and wrapping his arm around her shoulder. "You?"

"Donna." She observed them both carefully, noticing the body language between them both. Maybe they were friendly after all.

"Human?" The Doctor asked casually, looking her up and down.

"Yeah," Donna replied, quite surprised at the question. "Is that optional?"

"Well, it is for me."

"You're an _alien,_" Donna muttered. She wasn't sure how much more she could take of this… space stuff. "Both of you?"

"I'm human," Rose smiled. "He's the alien."

Donna paused for a moment, trying to get everything to sink in. "It's freezing with these doors open."

The Doctor slammed the doors shut and headed back to the console, scratching his head in confusion. "But I don't understand it, and I understand everything! This, this _can't_ happen! There is no way a human being can lock itself onto the TARDIS and transport itself inside. It must be…" He sprang across the console, full of energy as he grabbed an ophthalmoscope and used it to peer into Donna's eyes closely, standing a bit too close, unaware of any personal space whatsoever, mumbling an endless flow of complicated words and techno-babble. Rose stood back and hid her face in her hands in embarrassment, Donna staring at the Doctor in silent confusion. "Impossible. Some sort of subatomic connection? Something in the temporal field? Maybe something pulling you into alignment with the Chronon shell. Maybe something macro mining your DNA within the interior matrix. Maybe a genetic-" Suddenly, Donna gave him a good slap around the face. Rose felt like melting into the floor. The Doctor blinked in utter confusion. "What was that for?"

"GET ME TO THE CHURCH!" Donna yelled, resisting the urge to kick him in his crown jewels.

"Right!" The Doctor huffed, dropping his instruments and turning back to the console, Rose mouthing 'Sorry,' to Donna as an attempt of apologising for the Doctor's behaviour. "Fine! I don't want you here anyway! Where is this wedding?"

"Saint Mary's, Hayden Road, Chiswick, London, England, Earth, the Solar System!" Donna replied angrily. As if this situation couldn't get any more ridiculous!

"Right!" The Doctor landed the TARDIS, looking at Donna angrily and taking Rose's hand, walking towards the doors. "Chiswick!"

A large crowd of very confused families and friends were left inside Saint Mary's church, free to panic and cause a commotion. Donna's mother, Sylvia, was talking madly down a phone as she tried to locate her missing daughter. "No, she didn't run away! We're not talking jitters. She literally _vanished!_ Now, go and check the house and see if she's there." She hung up as Donna's fiancé, Lance, approached her. "Lance… any sign?"

"I've looked all around and I can't find her!" Lance replied, looking distraught and worried. "Where the hell did she go?" He turned and disappeared into the crowd.

"Showing off, that's what she is!" Sylvia muttered to her husband, Geoff. "First day at school, she was sent home for biting!"

"Well, it's a bit more serious than that. She's never disappeared before!" Geoff pointed out, obviously worried about his daughter.

"Oh, she didn't disappear," Sylvia rolled her eyes. "It's a trick! It's one of her silly little 'look at me' party pieces," She paused, a terrible thought popping into her head. "What if she's dead?"

Geoff let out a long sigh. "Don't say that!"

Meanwhile, Donna stepped out of the TARDIS and looked around desperately. Earth… most definitely Earth. London? Looks like it. No church, though. Not even the right street. "I said 'Saint Mary's!" Donna sighed exasperatingly. "What sort of Martian are you? Where's this?"

The Doctor was busy stroking the TARDIS, Rose looking at him in concern. "What's wrong, Doctor?"

"Something's wrong with her…" The Doctor gently pressed his ear to the side of the TARDIS. "It's like she's… recalibrating!" He rushed back into the TARDIS and fiddled with the console. "She's digesting!" Rose followed him inside, not aware of the look of pure shock on Donna's face. She just realised what she walked out of. A _police box_? But the inside was... _enormous_! The Doctor was busy pressing his hand to the time rotor. "Donna?" He called. "You've really gotta think. Is there anything that might've caused this?" Donna wasn't listening, she was completely bewildered as she paced around the outside of the TARDIS, touching the walls, her mouth wide open. "Anything you might've done?" The Doctor mused. "Any sort of alien contacts? I can't let you go wandering off in case you're dangerous. I mean, have you… have you seen any lights in the sky? Or… did you touch something? Something… something different? Something strange? Something made out of a sort of metal, or… who're you getting married to?" Donna popped her head back inside the TARDIS, checking that she wasn't hallucinating or imagining things. The inside was… bigger than the outside? Impossible! She stumbled backwards, her hand covering her mouth. Rose was watching, a little amused. She was in the same boat as Donna, a long time ago. "Are you sure he's human?" The Doctor asked, still rambling away, completely unaware of Donna's realisation. "He's not a bit overweight with a zip around his forehead, is he?" Donna whimpered. The TARDIS was too weird for her, and she fled quickly.

"Doctor! Donna's running." Rose murmured quickly, and the Doctor turned around in surprise.

"Donna!" The Doctor ran after Donna, catching up with her and panting lightly. "Donna." Rose caught up with them quickly, looking concerned.

"Leave me alone. Both of you. I just want to get married." Donna sulked.

"Come back to the TARDIS?" The Doctor offered.

"No way," Donna shook her head in disapproval. "That box is too… weird."

"It's… bigger on the inside, that's all." Rose explained, offering her a comforting smile.

"Oh! That's all?" Donna sighed and checked her watch, whimpering. "Ten past three. I'm gonna miss it!" Her perfect day was a complete mess.

"You can phone them," Rose murmured, seeing how devastated Donna was. "Tell them where you are."

"How do I do that?"

"Haven't you got a mobile?" The Doctor asked.

Donna stopped and stared at him. Was he really that thick? "I'm in my wedding dress. It doesn't have pockets! Who has pockets? Have you ever seen a bride with pockets? When I went to my fitting, do you think I said 'Allison, the one thing I forgot to say is give me pockets'?"

"…This man you're marrying… what's his name?" The Doctor asked slowly.

"Lance," Donna sighed happily, suddenly feeling all loved-up at the thought of her beloved.

"Gotta like Lance," The Doctor joked.

"Oi!" Donna snapped. "No stupid Martian is gonna stop me from getting married. To hell with you! Both of you!" She ran off quickly down a busy street, the Doctor and Rose following. "Taxi!" She cried, trying to get the taxi driver's attention. The driver ignored her, thinking she was a bit loony. They tried a few more taxis, but each driver ignored them.

"There's one!" Rose waved another taxi for attention. Again, it just ignored the trio.

"Do you have this effect on everyone?" The Doctor frowned at Donna. "Why aren't they stopping?"

"They think I'm in fancy dress!" Donna growled. Another taxi passed them, the driver smirking and tooting his horn.

"Stay off the scotch darlin'!" The taxi driver shouted, laughing as he drove away.

"They think I'm _drunk._"

Two blokes in a car yelled out of the window, sneering as they drove past. "You're fooling no-one, mate!"

"They think I'm in drag!" Donna sighed, agitated. She needed to get back to the wedding!

"Hold on, hold on." The Doctor stuck his fingers between his lips and whistled loudly, the sound shrill and piercing, causing Rose and Donna to wince and cover their ears. It successfully attracted the attention of a taxi, which stopped before them. They all quickly clambered into the back seat, time against them.

"Saint Mary's in Chiswick," Donna instructed the driver. "Just off Hayden Road. It's an emergency, I'm getting married! Just hurry up!"

"You know it'll cost you, sweetheart?" The taxi driver looked a bit amused at the sight of his customers. "Double rates today."

"Oh my God!" Donna's eyes widened and she looked to the Doctor and Rose for help. "You got any money?"

"Um… no," The Doctor glanced at Rose, and she shook her head sadly. He bit his lip as he turned back to Donna. "And you?"

Donna's eyes filled with anger and she gestured to her wedding dress. "_Pockets_!" The taxi driver stopped driving and shoved them all out onto the street again. "I'll have him. I've got his number. I'll have him! Talk about the Christmas Spirit."

At the mention of Christmas, Rose and the Doctor looked around, suddenly joyful. "Is it Christmas?" The Doctor asked, surprised.

"Well, duh," Donna rolled her eyes. "Maybe not on Mars, but here it's Christmas Eve," She noticed a phone box and headed straight for it, clambering inside. "We can reverse the charges!"

"How come you're getting married on Christmas Eve?" Rose asked, genuinely curious as she followed Donna quickly.

"Can't bear it," Donna replied, the Doctor holding the phone box door open for her. "I hate Christmas. Honeymoon in Morocco. Sunshine… lovely. What's the operator? I've not done this in years. What do you dial? 100?"

The Doctor flicked out the sonic screwdriver and whirred it against the phone. "Just call the direct."

"What did you do?" Donna frowned, looking at the Doctor's strange device. What the hell was that?

"Something… Martian. Now, phone. I'll get money! Rose, with me!" They both sprinted to the nearest cash machine. The man using it was being aggravatingly slow, and the Doctor started hopping from one foot to the other impatiently. Rose couldn't help but giggle.

Back at the church, Sylvia's phone started to ring. "Hello? Oh, no! The battery's gone! Has anyone got a charger?"

"Have you tried the hotel? Hello? Hello?" Lance's phone also went dead. "Vicar, is your phone working? Mine's run out!"

The Vicar was too busy sorting out his own business on the phone, looking very frustrated. "I've got one wedding about to arrive and another wedding refusing to leave, so yes, I do think it's a police matter."

Donna whimpered as she was directed to her mother's answer-phone. "Mum, get off the phone and listen. I'm in…" She looked around, suddenly quite unaware of where exactly she was. "Oh, my God… I dunno where I am! It's… it's a street. And there's WH Smith… but it's definitely Earth!"

Even Rose was fidgeting madly; the man using the cash machine was terribly slow. Finally, he moved out of the way, the Doctor darting forward and claiming the cash machine. "Keep an eye out," He murmured, looking around carefully before using his sonic screwdriver to access free cash from the machine.

"You allowed to do that?" Rose's eyes widened as she watched the Doctor _stealing_ from a cash machine!

"Probably not," The Doctor grinned, taking the cash swiftly.

Meanwhile, Donna had given up all hope with the phone box and ventured out onto the street, approaching a random woman and pleading for help. "Excuse me… I'm begging you. I'm getting married, I really am and I'm late, and I just need to borrow a tenner and I'll pay you back, I promise, and it's Christmas…"

"Doctor?" Rose murmured, watching a row of strangely familiar masked Santas playing a Christmas tune a short distance away. "I spot some trouble." The Doctor turned, watching the Santas suspiciously. Whilst they were distracted, Donna managed to find a taxi and convince the driver to take her to the church.

"Thanks for nothing, spaceman!" She shouted at the Doctor and Rose. "I'll see you both in court." She was whisked away, blissfully unaware that her driver was actually one of the masked Santas.

"Donna!" The Doctor shouted, sighing. He turned to look at the Santas playing trumpets. Slowly, one of them lowered their trumpet, the other two mimicking the action ominously, pointing their instruments like weapons. Rose held the Doctor's hand tightly and he pointed the sonic at the cash machine, notes exploding and flying everywhere, causing a scramble of confusion amongst shoppers as they ran around greedily, trying to snatch the free money. The Doctor and Rose used this distraction to run back to the TARDIS, both of them growing very worried about Donna Noble.


	3. The Runaway Bride, Chapter 2

Donna Noble fidgeted in the taxi and checked her watch anxiously, completely unaware that her driver was actually a Robot Santa. "I promise you mate, I'll give you the rest when we get there. Oh, I look a mess…" She removed her veil, trying to catch her breath back. "Hurry up!" She sighed and sat back, watching out of the window. Her eyes lit up as she spotted the turning for Chiswick, and her face fell when they drove past it. "Hold on a minute, I said Chiswick. You've missed the turning," She waited for a response, and frowned when she didn't get one. "'Scuse me? We should've turned off back there. We're going the wrong way!"

"Allons-y!" The Doctor shouted as he jumped around the console, Rose rolling her eyes and clinging to the console with a grin. The rotor started to rise and fall, the Doctor tracking the taxi on the TARDIS monitor. They were going to rescue Donna.

Meanwhile, the taxi had joined the motorway, cutting across lanes and narrowly missing other cars, causing nearby drivers to beep their horns angrily. "What the hell are you doing?" Donna shouted. "I'm late for the wedding. My _own_ wedding. Do you get that?" She whimpered and yelled, a little frightened. "Turn around! Turn this cab around RIGHT NOW! Are you deaf or what?" She lunged forward and pulled the Santa hood off the driver. The mask fell off and the robot was revealed. Donna's eyes widened and she sat back slowly, completely shocked. "Oh my God…" She started desperately pushing the windows and doors, trying to find a way out, or at least attract the attention of nearby drivers. "Help me! Help me! Help me!" She cried frantically, pushing her fist against the glass. "Help me! Help me!" A nearby driver noticed Donna and looked quite concerned, wanting to help but unable to since they were too busy driving. "Help me! Get me out! Help me! I'm being driven by a robot!"

Rose yelped as the console sparked, the TARDIS tilting dangerously. The Doctor took out a large hammer from underneath the console and whacked his time machine, frowning. "Behave!" The TARDIS complied and flew above the motorway, spinning through the air and approaching Donna's taxi.

"You are _kidding_ me." Donna murmured to herself, eyes wide as she noticed the TARDIS flying beside the taxi.

"Rose! When I tell you to, pull this lever!" The Doctor indicated a red lever to Rose. She nodded and clung to the console while the Doctor stumbled down to the doors, pushing them wide open. The TARDIS zoomed along the motorway, now alongside the taxi. "Open the door!" He shouted to Donna.

"You what?" She pressed her hands to the glass window.

"Open the door!" He shouted again, clinging to the side of the TARDIS.

"I can't, it's locked!" Upon hearing this, the Doctor pulled his sonic out and whirred it against the door, enabling Donna to open the window. "Santa's a robot!"

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "Donna, open the door!"

"What for?" She suddenly looked fearful.

"You've got to jump!" He realised it was extremely dangerous, but this was the only way.

"I'm not bleedin' jumping!" Donna cried. "I'm supposed to be getting married!" The robot overheard the conversation, and put its foot down on the accelerator, the taxi overtaking the TARDIS.

"Rose! Pull the lever!" The Doctor shouted. Rose yanked the lever down, causing the console to spark a few times. The TARDIS flew faster, accidentally knocking the roof of a distressed man's car before catching up to the taxi. Children in another nearby car watched the scene excitedly. The Doctor soniced the robot and managed to disable it. "Listen to me, you've got to jump!"

"I'm not jumping on a _motorway_!" Donna protested, completely terrified of the idea.

"Whatever that thing is, it needs you. And whatever it needs you for, it's not good! Now, come on!" The Doctor yelled.

"I'm in my _wedding dress_!" Donna yelled back.

The Doctor rolled his eyes, a little exasperated. They were running out of time. "Yes, you look lovely! Come on!"

Donna reluctantly opened the car door, positioning herself carefully and preparing herself to jump. The Doctor held his arms out, ready to catch her. She looked down at the road below. One wrong move and she'd die. "I can't do it!"

"Trust me." The Doctor said calmly.

"Is that what you said to her?" Donna looked between him and Rose. "Rose? Does she trust you?"

The Doctor couldn't help but smile. He loved Rose, he realised that after he almost lost her. He couldn't run from his feelings any longer. Donna could see a man truly in love, now. "Yes, she does. She trusts me to the end of the universe and you _really_ need to jump now!" Donna took the leap of faith and jumped straight into the Doctor's arms, landing in a heap on the floor. "Rose! The lever!" He chuckled. Rose pulled the lever, the doors slammed shut and the TARDIS zoomed up into the sky. The Doctor climbed up and landed them on a high rise building, the console suddenly sparking and smoke billowing out of the time machine. "Out! Out! _Out_!" He ushered the women out of the TARDIS and tried to extinguish the smoke. Donna sat down, sighing and checking her watch. Rose looked at Donna sadly, sitting down with her, the Doctor joining them once the smoke was cleared. "The funny thing is, for a spaceship, she doesn't really do that much flying. We'd better give her a couple of hours. You all right?"

Donna just shrugged. "Doesn't matter."

"Did we miss it?" Both the Doctor and Rose felt sorry for Donna.

"Yeah."

"Well, you can book another date…" The Doctor pointed out.

"Course we can."

"Still got the honeymoon…" Rose reminded her gently.

"It's just a holiday now." Donna sighed.

"Yeah… yeah… sorry." Rose rested her head against the Doctor's shoulder, feeling bad.

"It's not your fault. Either of you."

"Oh! That's a change." The Doctor chuckled lightly.

"Wish we had a time machine," Donna looked around at the view, the Doctor and Rose sharing a knowing glance. "Then we could go back and get it right."

"…Yeah, yeah. But… even if I did, I couldn't go back on someone's personal timeline. Apparently." The Doctor mused, Rose rolling her eyes and nudging him playfully.

Donna gave them both a suspicious glance and shivered a bit, the Doctor taking his jacket off and draping it around her shoulders. "God, you're skinny. This wouldn't fit a rat."

"Oh, and you'd better put this on." The Doctor felt through his pocket and produced what looked like a wedding ring.

"Oh, do you have to rub it in?" She frowned when she saw the ring.

"Those creatures can trace you," The Doctor explained. "This is a bio-damper. Should keep you hidden." He slipped it onto her finger slowly, stopping just for a second to imagine doing this with Rose. Not with the bio-damper, with a proper wedding ring. He sighed and smiled. Maybe one day? "With this ring, I thee bio-damp."

"For better or for worse," Donna laughed. "So, come on then. Robot Santas. What are they for?"

"Ah, your basic robo-scavenger," The Doctor explained. "The Father Christmas stuff is just a disguise. They're trying to blend in. Me and Rose met them last Christmas."

"Why, what happened then?" Donna asked, trying to think back to last Christmas.

"…Great big spaceship?" The Doctor frowned. "Hovering over London? You didn't notice?"

Donna waved her hand dismissively. "I had a bit of a hangover."

Rose giggled softly and the Doctor decided not to carry on that conversation. He observed the landscape instead. "Ah, we spent Christmas Day just over there in the Powell Estate! Didn't we, Rose?"

"Yeah…" Rose looked towards her old home, her heart beginning to hurt as she thought of her family. The Doctor noticed her face growing sad and he held her in a tight hug.

"Sorry."

"S'okay." Rose nuzzled into him and sighed.

"Question is…" The Doctor decided to change the subject swiftly. "What do the camouflaged robot mercenaries want with you? And how did you get inside the TARDIS? I don't know…" He looked at Donna with a sigh, pulling his sonic screwdriver out of his pocket. "What's your job?"

"I'm a secretary," Donna replied.

"It's weird…" The Doctor started to scan her with the sonic. "I mean, you're not special, you're not powerful, you're not connected, you're not clever, you're not important…"

"Rose, have you ever had the urge to punch this skinny idiot in the face?" Donna sighed and whacked the screwdriver aside. Rose couldn't help but giggle and nod in agreement. "Stop bleeping me!"

"What kind of secretary?" The Doctor enquired.

"I'm at HC Clements. It's where I met Lance. I was temping…" She sighed happily as she fished through old memories. She was sitting inside a crowded office space, feeling quite overwhelmed by her surroundings. "I mean, it was all a bit posh really. I'd spent the last two years at a double glazing firm. Well, I thought, I'm never gonna fit in here," She smiled as she remembered the moment when Lance caught her gaze for the first time, and gestured to his coffee pot, offering her some. "And then he made me coffee…" She was flattered at the offer. "I mean, that just doesn't happen. Nobody gets the secretaries a coffee. And Lance, he's the head of HR! He doesn't need to bother with me! But he was nice… he was funny," She smiled as she remembered a joke they shared about a colleague. They were both laughing hysterically like little kids. "And it turns out he thought everyone else was really snotty too. So that's how it started, me and him... One cup of coffee. That was it."

"When was this?" The Doctor asked, listening carefully.

"Six months ago," Donna replied.

"Bit quick to get married…" Rose murmured, smiling.

"Well, he insisted," Donna smiled, having another flashback. She was standing with Lance in a crowded bar, when she suddenly proposed to him. Lance's eyes widened in terror. "And he nagged… and he nagged me…" Donna was obviously twisting the story to suit her. She was actually the one who nagged Lance, chasing him around the office with marriage proposals pouring out of her mouth. "And he just wore me down and then finally, I just gave in."

"What does HC Clements do?" The Doctor enquired. He needed as much detail as possible.

"Oh, security systems," Donna answered. "You know, entry codes, ID cards, that sort of thing. If you ask me, it's a posh name for locksmiths."

"Keys…" The Doctor mused.

"Anyway, enough of my CV," Donna laughed. "Come on, it's time to face the consequences. Oh, this is gonna be so shaming. You can do the explaining, Martian boy."

"Yeah, I'm not from Mars," The Doctor smirked. They all stood up carefully.

"Oh, I had this great big reception all planned…" Donna sighed. "Everyone's gonna be heartbroken."

Quite the opposite. Turned out everyone decided to go on with the reception without Donna. They were blasting 'Merry Christmas Everybody' at full volume, dancing and drinking, laughing merrily and eating. The Doctor, Rose and Donna walked in, Donna staring around with a thunderstruck look on her face. As people noticed her, they began to freeze, until the entire room was quiet.

"You had the reception without me?" Donna growled.

"Donna…" Lance looked at Donna with a worried, slightly exasperated look. "What happened to you?"

"You had the reception _without me_?" Donna raised her voice slightly, and an awkward silence fell upon the room.

"Hello!" The Doctor waved cheerily. "I'm the Doctor! This is Rose!"

Rose waved awkwardly. "Hi..."

"They had the reception without me!" Donna looked back at the Doctor, devastated.

"Yes, I gathered…" Both the Doctor and Rose couldn't help but feel sympathetic towards her. What a rubbish wedding day.

"Well, it was all paid for…" sneered Donna's enemy, Nerys, who was also invited to the wedding. "Why not?"

"_Thank you,_ Nerys." Donna growled.

"Well, what were we supposed to do?" Sylvia approached with a stern tone to her voice. "I got your silly little message in the end… 'I'm on Earth'? Very funny. What the hell happened? How did you do it? I mean, what's the trick because I'd love to know!" The whole room exploded into an incomprehensible noise of people babbling, asking questions, and shouting angrily. Donna became overwhelmed and burst into tears, the mood in the room changing from anger to pity. Lance moved forward and wrapped Donna in a hug, the crowd applauding them. Donna turned her head slightly to look at the Doctor and Rose, winking through her fake tears. Rose and the Doctor couldn't help but smirk.

The party continued as normal; Donna was even joining in with the dancing. The Doctor and Rose watched with a smile, and Rose felt eager to drag the Doctor in and join in with the fun. However, he was too busy asking to borrow a phone from a nearby man at the bar, slipping on his brainy specs and conducting a WAP search for HC Clements. "Any luck there, brainiac?" Rose murmured as she watched the Doctor carefully.

"Almost," The Doctor used the sonic to speed the process up, and Rose's eyes widened as the result displayed 'Sole Prop. TORCHWOOD' on the phone. They both had enough of that blasted word. The Doctor flipped the phone shut and gave it back to the man, sighing and running a hand over his face.

"Doctor..." Rose carefully took his hand and slowly led him to the dance floor, looking at him tenderly. "Dance with me?" He seemed a little bewildered at first but he soon started to enjoy himself as they started to dance together. The world seemed to blur around them, it was just the two of them. His hands slid around her waist and her fingertips brushed up against the back of his neck as they danced together, gazing into each other's eyes. She was aching to kiss him and he felt very much the same. She very almost did, their lips only lightly touching before a nearby cameraman tapped the Doctor's shoulder, wanting his attention. The Doctor spun around and Rose pouted.

"Excuse me, you were the one with Donna earlier, right?" The cameraman gestured to his video camera. "You might want to see this. I taped the whole wedding; they've all had a look. They said 'sell it to You've Been Framed'. I said 'more like the News.' Here we are…" He played the tape, Rose and the Doctor watching carefully. The camera was zoomed in on Donna, her face screwing up in fright as she screamed, disintegrating into golden particles and zooming up into the air.

"It can't be!" The Doctor gasped, recognising the particles. "Play it again?"

"Clever, mind!" The camera man chuckled. "Good trick, I'll give her that. I was clapping." He played the video again, the Doctor watching with his brow furrowed.

"But that looks like… Huon Particles!"

"What's that?" Rose asked softly.

"That's impossible… that's _ancient_! Huon energy doesn't exist anymore, not for billions of years! So old, that…" His eyes widened, and he looked directly at the bio-damper on Donna's finger. "…it can't be hidden by a bio-damper!" He and Rose rushed to a window, looking out at the Santa robots making their way slowly to the house. They had been found. "Donna!" They rushed back over to Donna quickly. "Donna, they've found you."

Fright filled Donna's eyes. "But you said I was safe."

"The bio-damper doesn't work. We've got to get everyone out."

"Oh, my God…" Donna looked around slowly at everyone. "It's all my family..."

"Out the back door!" Rose suggested, pointing at a nearby door. They rushed out, only to be confronted by two of the robots.

"Maybe not," The Doctor murmured, and they fled back inside. The Santa robots were approaching from all sides.

"We're trapped!" Donna whimpered. The robots were holding a remote control, which they raised slowly. The Doctor's eyes widened and he looked straight at the Christmas tree in the middle of the room. Rose noticed the Doctor's gaze and she gasped, recalling the Christmas tree that almost killed her last year.

"Christmas trees…" The Doctor murmured.

"What about them?" Donna asked.

"They kill." He rushed into the crowd quickly. "Get away from the tree!"

Rose followed quickly, warning the other guests. "Don't touch the tree!"

"Get away from the Christmas tree, everyone get away from it!" The Doctor ordered, while the robots were ready with their controls. Donna moved a group of girls away from the tree, but they were running out of time.

"Out!" Donna shouted. "Lance, tell them!"

"Stay away from the tree!" The Doctor yelled. Too late. The robots pressed a big red button in the middle of their remotes.

"Oh, for God's sake!" Sylvia growled. "This man's an idiot! Why? What's a Christmas tree gonna… oh!" She watched in surprise as the baubles started to float away from the tree, moving in some kind of dance. They hovered over everyone's heads, the guests watching with amused smiles until the baubles started to dive-bomb around the room, exploding. Panic burst amongst everyone as they ran for cover. Donna yanked Lance down to hide under a table and the Doctor kept Rose close as they ran over to a DJ's stand. The Santa robots entered the room, lining up opposite the Doctor and Rose.

"Oi! Santa!" The Doctor shouted. "Word of advice: if you're attacking a man with a sonic screwdriver…" He picked up the microphone and murmured. "Don't let him near the sound system," He pressed the sonic next to the amplifiers and a horrible, high-pitched screeching sound filled the entire room. Everyone covered their ears and winced, the robots shaking violently until they fell to pieces. The Doctor slipped the sonic back into his pocket and ran over to examine the robots along with Rose. He picked up one of the remote controls that the robots were using, examining it carefully. Everyone else began to stand up, mumbling and groaning, Donna climbing out from underneath the table to quickly join the Doctor and Rose. "Look at that…" The Doctor held up the remote control to the girls. "Remote control for the decorations, but there's a second remote control for the robots," He examined the head of a robot. "They're not scavengers anymore. I think someone's taken possession?"

"Who?" Rose asked, frowning deeply.

"Someone very powerful," The Doctor answered.

"Never mind that," Donna murmured. "You're a doctor, people have been hurt."

"Nah, they wanted you alive, look…" He threw a bauble to Donna. "They're not active now."

"All I'm saying is, you could help." Donna pointed out.

"Gotta think of the bigger picture," The Doctor held the head of a robot to his ear. "There's still a signal!" He took off quickly, holding Rose's hand tightly. Donna moved to follow him, but she was interrupted by her mother.

"Donna… who is he?" Sylvia asked, looking scared. "Who is that man?"

Donna didn't reply, she just followed the Doctor and Rose, leaving Sylvia and Lance both looking very frightened. She had no clue who this strange man and his companion was, but for some reason, she already trusted them. Outside, the Doctor was scanning the robot head with his sonic screwdriver. "There's someone behind this," The Doctor explained. "Directing the robo-force."

"But why have they chosen Donna?" Rose asked. "What has she done wrong?"

"If we find the controller, we'll find that out. Oh!" He suddenly raised the sonic screwdriver into the air. "It's up there! Something in the sky…"

Up in the sky, an enormous star shaped web hovered in space above Earth. Inside the web, a gigantic Empress spider watched the Doctor, Rose and Donna on her screen, her voice raspy, rough and evil. "Clever, clever, clever boy! Travelling man. He shall come to me. He, his precious Bad Wolf and the beautiful bride. Such secrets to unlock! I shall descend this night. I shall descend upon this Earth and _shine_!"


	4. The Runaway Bride, Chapter 3

The Doctor, Rose and Donna were gathered outside the reception venue, Lance stepping out hesitantly and joining them. "I've lost the signal," The Doctor muttered and turned to Donna. "Donna, we've got to get to your office, HC Clements. I think that's where it all started. Lance… is it Lance? Can you give me a lift?" He walked off without waiting for an answer, of course. No time to waste. They all arrived swiftly at HC Clements, running into Donna's office, the Doctor darting straight to a computer. "This might just be a locksmiths, but HC Clements was brought up twenty three years ago by the Torchwood Institute."

"Who are they?" Donna enquired.

"They were behind the battle of Canary Wharf," Rose replied, wrinkling her nose and sniffling. That was only a mere few hours ago, for her and the Doctor.

"…Cyberman invasion," The Doctor offered, noticing Donna's blank look. She blinked and looked at him cluelessly. "Skies over London full of Daleks?"

"Oh, I was in Spain," Donna smiled and shrugged.

"They had Cybermen in Spain." He raised an eyebrow.

"Scuba diving."

Both the Doctor and Rose looked at her incredulously. "That big picture, Donna… you keep on missing it!" The Doctor darted to another computer. "Torchwood was destroyed, but HC Clements stayed in business. I think someone else came in and took over the operation."

"What do they want with Donna, though?" Rose tilted her head and frowned. "It doesn't make sense, does it?"

"Yeah, why have I been dragged into this?" asked Donna, looking at the Doctor with worried eyes.

"Somehow, you've been dosed with Huon energy," The Doctor explained. "And that's a problem because Huon energy hasn't existed since the Dark Times. The only place you'd find a Huon particle now is a remnant in the heart of the TARDIS. See? That's what happened. Say…" He picked up a nearby mug and showed it to her. "That's the TARDIS," He also picked up a pencil from the desk, gesturing it to her. "And that's you. The particles inside you activated. The two sets of particles magnetised and WHAP!" The Doctor threw the pencil into the mug. "You were pulled inside the TARDIS.

"I'm a pencil inside a mug?" Donna asked weakly.

"Yes you are," The Doctor chuckled. "4H. Sums you up. Lance? What was HC Clements working on? Anything top secret? Special operations? Do not enter?"

"I don't know," Lance replied defensively. "I'm in charge of personnel. I wasn't project manager," He watched anxiously as the Doctor held his sonic against the computer monitor, displaying a 3D plan of the building. "Why am I even explaining myself? What the hell are we talking about?"

"They make keys, that's the point. And look at this…" He pointed to the screen. "We're on the third floor," He got up quickly and led the others to the lift, waiting for it to arrive. "Underneath reception, there's a basement, yes?" The lift doors slide open, the Doctor and Rose stepping inside, examining the controls. "Then how come when you look on the lift, there's a button marked 'lower basement'? There's a whole floor which doesn't exist on the official plans. So, what's down there, then?"

"Are you telling me this building's got a secret floor?" Lance asked incredulously.

"No, I'm _showing _you this building's got a secret floor." The Doctor replied, clearly showing the 'lower basement' button to Lance.

"It needs a key," Rose pointed out.

"I don't," The Doctor grinned as he soniced the lock. "Right then, thanks you two," He turned to Lance and Donna. "We can handle this, see you later."

"No chance, Martian," Donna stepped into the lift, smirking. "You're the man who keeps saving my life; I ain't letting you out of my sight."

"Going down!" Rose giggled.

"Lance?" Donna looked at Lance pointedly.

"Maybe I should go to the police?" Lance offered, trying to be helpful.

"_Inside._" Lance stepped inside the lift meekly.

"To honour and obey?" The Doctor couldn't help but smirk, and Lance let out a sigh.

"Tell me about it, mate."

"Oi!" Donna laughed as the doors closed and the lift descended through the building.

The Empress watched the scene unfolding carefully through her screen, sitting happily inside her enormous web, hissing and cackling with joy. "The bride approaches. She is my key!"

Meanwhile, the Doctor, Rose, Donna and Lance clambered out of the lift as it reached the lower basement, looking around at a dimly lit, dank, dreary corridor. "Where are we?" Donna wrinkled her nose in disapproval. "Well, what goes on down here?"

"Let's find out!" Rose smiled, eager to get to the bottom of the situation.

Donna glanced down the corridor, frowning a bit. "Do you think Mr. Clements knows about this place?"

"The mysterious HC Clements? I think he's a part of it," The Doctor's eyes were suddenly caught by something. "Oh, look! Transport!" The Doctor, Rose, Donna and Lance rolled along at a moderate speed, each standing on their very own electric scooter. Donna looked at the Doctor, and the Doctor looked at Rose, each of them bursting out into hysterical giggles. Lance, however, didn't see what was so funny. They eventually arrived at a door which clearly stated 'Torchwood – authorised personnel only', the Doctor completely ignoring the sign as he turned the wheel to open the door, revealing a ladder. "Wait here," He peered up the ladder. "Just need to get my bearings. Don't…" He looked at all three of them sternly. "Do anything." He climbed up the ladder carefully.

"Be careful," Rose called with a smile.

"You'd better come back!" Donna added, and she couldn't help but grin.

"I couldn't get rid of you if I tried!" The Doctor called back with a smirk. He was starting to like Donna, now. They had gotten off on the wrong foot.

"Donna, have you thought about this?" Lance asked, eyes wide and anxious. He seemed very nervous, for some strange reason. "Properly? I mean, this is serious! What the hell are we gonna do?"

Donna wasn't really listening, she just smiled brightly. "Oh, I thought July." She turned her attention back to the Doctor as he reached the top of the ladder, opening up a manhole and climbing out into broad daylight… overlooking the Thames flood barrier! He climbed back down swiftly, smiling at them all.

"Thames flood barrier! Right on top of us. Torchwood snuck in and built this place underneath."

"What, there's like, a secret base hidden underneath a major London landmark?" Donna asked, quite surprised.

"I know! Unheard of!" The Doctor grinned. Rose had noticed another room next to them, and they all walked into what seemed to be a laboratory. Large test tubes were dotted around the room, bubbling away next to expensive and complicated chemistry equipment. "Oh, look at this!" The Doctor marvelled at some of the test tubes, feeling in his element surrounded by high tech scientific equipment. "Stunning! Particle extrusion!"

"What does it do?" Rose enquired, not recognising any of the strange pieces of equipment.

"Particle extrusion," The Doctor replied. "Hold on…" He lightly tapped one of the bubbling tubes. "Brilliant. They've been manufacturing Huon particles. In case my people got rid of Huons, they unravelled the atomic structure."

"Your people?" Lance frowned. "Who are they? What company do you represent?"

"Oh, I'm a freelancer. But this lot are rebuilding them. They've been using the river! Extruding them through a flat hydrogen base so they've got the end result. Huon particles in liquid form." The Doctor picked up a small test tube full of Huon particles, examining it closely.

"And that's what's inside me?" Donna also peered closely at the particles. The Doctor gently turned a knob at the top of the test tube, the contents inside glowing a brilliant gold – and Donna too. "Oh, my God!" She gasped, looking down at her glowing skin.

"Because the particles are inert," The Doctor began to explain. "They need something living to catalyse inside and that's you. Saturate the body and then… HA!" His brain ticked into realisation mode and he was buzzing with mad enthusiasm, Donna jumping out of her skin and frowning. "The wedding! Yes, you're getting married, that's it! Best day of your life, walking down the aisle, oh your body's a battleground! There's a chemical war inside! Adrenaline, acetylcholine, WHAM go the endorphins, oh you're _cooking_! Yeah, you're like a walking oven! A pressure cooker, a microwave, all churning away, the particles reach boiling point, SHAZAM!" He received a hard slap around the face from an upset Donna. "What did I do this time?"

"Are you enjoying this?" Donna whimpered. The Doctor felt a little ashamed, he was being a tad too happy. Rose stood by and held the Doctor's hand tightly. "Right, just tell me…" Donna sighed. "These particles. Are they dangerous? Am I safe?"

"Yes," replied the Doctor in an unconvincing tone.

"Doctor… if your lot got rid of Huon particles, why did they do that?"

"Because they were deadly," The Doctor admitted.

"Oh, my God…" Donna whimpered, feeling even more scared. The Doctor looked at her with a gentle expression, his voice soft.

"I'll sort it out, Donna. Whatever's been done to you, I'll reverse it. I won't lose you."

"I trust you," Donna nodded. The moment is suddenly interrupted by loud crashes and bangs that seemed to come from all around them. The creaky, evil voice of the Empress echoed in the room.

"Oh, she is long since lost," The wall ahead of them slid upwards slowly, revealing a huge chamber with a large round hole in the middle of the floor. "I have waited so long, hibernating at the edge of the universe…" Lance's eyes widened in terror and he quickly retreated through the back door. "Until the secret heart was uncovered and called out to waken!" Along the walls of the chamber stood more robots, wearing black hoods and armed with weapons. Lance fled down the corridor into the room which held the ladder, whilst the Doctor, Rose and Donna peered down at the gaping hole in the floor.

"Someone's been digging," He murmured. "Oh, very Torchwood. Drilled by laser. How far down does it go?"

"Down and down, all the way to the centre of the Earth!" The Empress hissed.

"Really?" Rose gaped at the hole, quite surprised. "Seriously? What for?"

Donna shuffled forwards a bit and murmured quietly. "Dinosaurs?"

"What?" The Doctor frowned.

"Dinosaurs?"

"What are you on about, dinosaurs?"

"That film, Under the Earth, with dinosaurs!" Donna sighed. "Trying to help!"

"That's not helping," The Doctor shook his head and smirked. Rose and Donna giggled a bit.

"Such a sweet couple!" snarled the Empress.

"Only a madman talks to thin air and trust me, you don't want to make me mad. Where are you?"

"High in the sky…" The Empress let out a shrill laugh, her voice dreamy. "Floating so high on Christmas Night."

"I didn't come all this way to talk on the intercom!" The Doctor was full of confidence now, striding forward and looking around. "Come on, let's have a look at you!"

The Empress watched the trio with a smirk through her screen. "Who are you with such command?"

"I'm the Doctor."

"Prepare your best medicines, doctor-man, for you will be sick at heart." The Empress teleported herself down into the chamber, snarling and growling at the group. She was enormous compared to them; she filled most of the chamber. Her six black eyes were filled with hatred and rage, her eight legs disgustingly thin and bony. Rose and Donna looked up with horrified expressions, staying very close to the Doctor.

"The Racnoss…" The Doctor gazed up with wide eyes, recognising the creature immediately. "But that's impossible; you're one of the Racnoss!"

"Empress of the Racnoss!" boasted the Empress with a snarl. Elsewhere, Lance was sneaking around through the base, climbing up the ladder and through another corridor.

"If you're the Empress, where's the rest of the Racnoss?" The Doctor frowned, pacing and keeping his eyes fixed on the Empress. "Or… are you the only one?"

"Such a sharp mind!" The Empress hissed.

"The Racnoss come from the Dark Times, billions of years ago, billions," He explained to Rose and Donna. "They were carnivores, omnivores, they devoured whole planets."

"Racnoss are born starving! Is that our fault?"

"They _eat_ people?" Rose grimaced at the thought of billions of Racnoss eating humans.

"HC Clements, did he wear those… those, erm, black and white shoes?" The Doctor enquired, glancing up at the ceiling and looking grim.

"He did!" Donna giggled. "We used to laugh; we used to call him the fat cat in spats." The Doctor nodded to a large web on the ceiling, where a pair of black and white shoes were poking out, still attached to the poor HC Clements. Donna gasped and Rose whimpered. "Oh, my God!"

"Mm, my Christmas dinner!" The Empress cackled.

"You shouldn't even exist!" The Doctor frowned. "Way back in history, the Fledgling Empires went to war against the Racnoss, they were wiped out!" Lance appeared on a small balcony above the Empress, unbeknownst to her. Donna and Rose both spotted him quickly, and he motioned for them to stay quiet.

"Except for me," snarled the Empress proudly.

"But that's what I've got inside me," Donna stepped forward, attempting to distract the Empress. "That Huon energy thing. Oi! Look at me, lady, I'm talking! Where do I fit in? How comes I get all stacked up with these Huon particles?" Lance moved closer to the Empress, wielding an axe. "Look at me, you! Look me in the eye and tell me!"

"Oh, the bride is so feisty!" cackled the Empress, amused at Donna's attempt to be brave.

"Yes, I am!" Donna shouted. "And I don't know what you are, you big… thing. But a spider's just a spider and an axe is an axe!" She gazed up at Lance hopefully as he swung the axe, the Empress spinning around and snarling, but… Lance suddenly stopped. A short pause. He looked at Donna and laughed, the Empress cackling with him. Something wasn't right.

"That was a good one!" Lance laughed loudly. "Your face!"

"Lance is funny," The Empress shrieked with laughter.

Donna glared at both of them, terribly confused. "What?"

"I'm sorry," The Doctor murmured quietly.

"What's happening?" Rose glanced at the Doctor with a look of concern on her face.

"Lance is betraying us," He whispered.

"Lance, don't be so stupid!" Donna frowned deeply. "Get her!"

"God, she's thick!" He looked at Donna pityingly, but there was a nasty tone to his voice. "Months I had to put up with her. _Months._ A woman who can't even point to Germany on a map."

Donna let out a whimper, even more confused and growing a little upset. "I don't… understand."

"How did you meet him?" The Doctor asked softly, already knowing the answer.

"In the office," she replied.

"He made you coffee," He pointed out.

"What?" Donna frowned.

"Every day, I made you coffee!" Lance shouted, as if he was addressing an idiot.

"You had to be dosed with liquid particles over six months," The Doctor explained.

"He was… poisoning me?" Donna's eyes grew wide, she was becoming very upset.

"It was all there in the job title. The Head of Human Resources," The Doctor hissed, disgusted at Lance's behaviour and attitude. Humans were so disgusting, sometimes.

"This time, it's personnel!" Lance smirked, sharing a laugh with the Racnoss.

"But…" Donna still couldn't make this all sink in. Her life with Lance was so perfect. They had a whole future planned out together. "We were getting married."

"Well, I couldn't risk you running off," Lance sneered. "I had to say yes. And then I was stuck with a woman who thinks the height of excitement is a new flavour Pringle. Oh, I had to sit there and listen to all that yap yap yap. 'Oh, Brad and Angelina… is Posh pregnant?' X Factor, Atkins Diet, Feng Shiu, split ends, text me, text me, text me! Dear God, the never ending fountain of fat, stupid trivia!" Donna's face fell even more as she listened to the abuse, Lance's voice full of hatred and sarcasm. "I deserve a medal!"

"Oh, is that what she's offered you?" The Doctor sneered, defending his friend. "The Empress of the Racnoss? What are you? Her consort?"

"It's better than a night with _her_," Lance replied, his hateful eyes darting to Donna.

Donna whimpered, Rose placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. "But I love you."

Lance's tone was so selfish. "That's what made it easy. It's like you said, Doctor. The big picture. What's the point of it all if the Human Race is nothing? That's what the Empress can give me. The chance to... go out there. To see it. The size of it all. I think you understand that, don't you, Doctor?"

"Who is this little physician? And his Wolf?" The Empress snarled.

Lance glared at the Doctor and Rose. "What she said. Martian."

"Oh, I'm sort of… homeless," The Doctor held Rose close. "She's stuck with me. But the point is, what's down here? The Racnoss are extinct. What's gonna help you four thousand miles down? That's just the molten core of the Earth, isn't it?"

"I think he wants us to talk," Lance smirked.

"I think so too," The Empress cackled.

"Well, tough! All we need is Donna!"

"Kill this chattering little doctor-man and his Bad Wolf!" shrieked the Empress.

Donna moved forward and stood in front of the Doctor and Rose protectively, her heart thumping in her chest, tears springing into her eyes. "Don't you hurt them!"

"No, no, it's all right," The Doctor murmured to Donna.

"No, I won't let them!" She replied, frightened for the safety of her friends. Her only friends, by the sound of things.

"At arms!" The Empress shrieked. The robots standing around the room pointed their guns straight at the Doctor and Rose.

"Ah. Now. Except," The Doctor tried to interrupt.

"Take aim!" The robots shifted to take aim.

"Well, I just want to point out the obvious," He tried again to interrupt the Empress, his arms protective around Rose.

"They won't hit the bride," The Empress hissed. "They're very good shots."

"Just, just, just hold on, just a tick, just a tiny, just a little tick," The Doctor uttered, wanting the Empress's attention. "If you think about it, the particles activated in Donna and drew her inside my spaceship. So! Reverse it… the spaceship comes to her." He gently moved the tube of Huon particles that caused Donna and the particles to glow.

"Fire!" The Empress cried. The robots fired their guns, but it was too late, the magnificent TARDIS had already materialised around them. They were safe, for now. The Doctor darted to the console, Rose grinning as she followed.

"Off we go!" He pulled a lever and the TARDIS dematerialised swiftly, the bullets having no effect whatsoever on the blue box.

"My key! My key!" The Empress shrieked in horror as Donna was whisked away.

"Oh, you know what I said before about time machines?" The Doctor grinned. "Well, I lied. And now we're gonna use it." The TARDIS was spinning through the deep blue swirling vortex. "We need to find out what the Empress of the Racnoss is digging up. If something's buried at the planet core, it must've been there since the beginning. That's just brilliant. Molto bene! I've always wanted to see this..." He looked very excited. "Donna, Rose, we're going further back than I've ever been before." He turned back to look at Rose and Donna, his grin fading a bit. Rose was comforting Donna, who was crying silently.

"If a key is lost, then another must be cut!" The Empress cackled. "At arms!" The robots turned their guns to Lance, and his smug nasty face disappeared immediately.

Elsewhere, the TARDIS arrived at their destination and whirred quietly. The Doctor approached the girls, looking concerned. "We've arrived… want to see?"

"Come on…" Rose smiled kindly at Donna. "It'll be amazing. Promise."

"I s'pose," Donna shrugged, standing up slowly and joining the others as they walked over to the doors.

"No human's ever seen this," He smiled. "You'll both be the first."

"All I want to see is my bed," Donna whimpered.

"Rose Tyler, Donna Noble… welcome to the creation of the Earth." The Doctor opened the doors to reveal a spectacular, breath-taking sight. Rose's eyes widened in wonder and Donna's mouth fell straight open. The Sun shined brightly through beautiful dust and gas clouds, swirling in gorgeous vivid colours amongst enormous grey and brown rocks floating around. "We've gone back 4.6 billion years. There's no solar system, not yet. Only dust and rocks and gas," He pointed at the Sun. "That's the Sun over there, brand new. Just beginning to burn."

"Where's the Earth?" Rose asked, looking around and taking in the view. She'd seen the destruction of the Earth, and now she was seeing the creation. It was wonderful.

"All around us…" The Doctor held Rose's hand tightly. "In the dust."

"Puts the wedding in perspective…" Donna sighed. "Lance was right. We're just... tiny."

"No, but that's what you do," He smiled, admiration in his voice. "The human race. Making sense out of chaos. Marking it out with weddings and Christmas and calendars. This whole process is beautiful, but only if it's being observed."

"So, me and Rose came out of all this?" Donna asked, looking out at the beautiful swirling dust.

The Doctor couldn't help but grin. "Isn't that brilliant?"

A huge chunk of rock floated past the TARDIS, and Donna laughed a bit despite feeling devastated about Lance. "I think that's the Isle of Wight."

"Eventually, gravity takes hold," explained the Doctor. "Say, one big rock, heavier than the others, starts to pull other rocks towards it. All the dust and gas and elements get pulled in, everything, piling in until you get the..."

"Earth," Rose breathed, grinning and loving the view.

"But the question is... what was that first rock?" The Doctor watched very closely as a star shaped rock emerged slowly through the clouds and gas.

"Look!" Donna's eyes widened as she noticed the star shaped rock.

"The Racnoss..." he whispered.

Back inside the underground base, the robots were force-feeding water poisoned with Huon particles to Lance. The Empress was cackling, pleased that her plan was back on track. "Now I have measured the bride's catalysis, I can force feed it! Drink the particles. Become the key!" Lance struggled madly, his perfect little plan was going completely wrong.

"Hold on," The Doctor frowned. "The Racnoss are hiding from the war! What's it doing?" He watched closely as the rocks and particles of dust and gas zoomed towards the Racnoss web, as if drawn by a magnetic force.

"Exactly what you said," Rose's eyes widened as she watched the process outside.

"Oh, they didn't just bury something at the centre of the Earth..." The Doctor's tone was full of realisation. "They _became_ the centre of the Earth. The first rock." Suddenly, the TARDIS shuddered violently, the trio nearly falling over.

"What was that?" Donna frowned, worried as she regained her balance.

The Doctor slammed the doors shut. "Trouble."


	5. The Runaway Bride, Chapter 4

The Empress Racnoss loomed over a very timid and frightened Lance, cackling away madly. "My wonderful key. Now, my servants. Bind him!" Lance whimpered as he was restrained by the robots, starting to glow, a far cry from the arrogant nasty man he seemed to be merely a few minutes ago. Meanwhile, the TARDIS shuddered and tipped as it flew back through the vortex, the Doctor, Rose and Donna struggling to stand upright.

"What the hell's it doing?" Donna cried, clinging to the console.

"Remember that little trick I pulled, particles pulling particles?" The Doctor tried desperately to control his ship, but it was no use. "It works in reverse! They're pulling us back!"

"Can't you stop it?" Rose clung to the Doctor tightly.

"Not without cutting the link, and we can't do that!" The Doctor shouted in response over the noisy TARDIS.

"Hasn't it got a handbrake?" cried Donna, who was struggling to keep her balance in her hefty wedding dress. "Can't you reverse or warp or beam or something?"

"Backseat driver. Oh! Wait a minute!" The Doctor dived underneath the console and pulled out the extrapolator. "The extrapolator! Can't stop us, but it should give us a good bump!" The TARDIS materialised back inside the underground chamber, the Empress hissing in delight.

"The bride shall join her groom! What a wedding there shall be."

"Now!" The Doctor whacked the extrapolator, grinning at the girls. The TARDIS suddenly disappeared and reappeared down the corridor. The three of them stepped out, looking around. "We're about 200 yards to the right. Come on!" He took Rose's hand and ran quickly.

"She is close!" The Empress shrieked in surprise as she watched the TARDIS disappear. "The holy bride in white. Find her! Find her!"

The Doctor led Rose and Donna over to the door holding the dark chamber with the ladder, which led up to the Thames flood barrier. "But what do we do?" Donna panted softly, stopping to catch her breath back.

"I don't know!" The Doctor pulled a stethoscope from his pocket and pressed it against the door, listening. "I make it up as I go along! But trust me, I've got a history."

"I don't understand, Doctor…" Rose frowned. "Donna's full of particles, but what _for_?"

"There's a Racnoss web at the centre of the Earth," he explained. "But my people unravelled their power source. The Huon particles ceased to exist but the Racnoss are stuck," Two robots suddenly grabbed Donna and Rose from behind; covering their mouths so they couldn't scream, dragging them away quickly. The Doctor hadn't even noticed. "They've just been in hibernation for billions of years. Frozen. Dead. Kaput! So, Donna's the new key. They need her to open it, and you both have never been so quiet…" He finally turned around and groaned as he noticed they were missing. He looked up and down the corridor, quickly opening the door with his sonic screwdriver, only to be confronted by another armed robot. Donna had joined Lance, who were both tied up in the web on the ceiling. Rose was trapped in a separate web, struggling madly.

"I hate you," Donna muttered.

"Yeah, I think we've gone a bit beyond that now, _sweetheart_," Lance growled.

"My golden couple!" The Empress cackled. "And their little pet wolf. Together at last, your awful wedded life. Tell me; do you want to be released? All three of you?"

"Yes!" Donna, Lance and Rose nodded eagerly, all three of them wriggling against the strong web.

"You are supposed to say 'I do'," The Empress smirked at Donna and Lance.

Lance grimaced. "Ha! No chance."

"Say it!" shrieked the Empress angrily. Lance looked at Donna slowly, his teeth clenched and his eyes wild with fury.

"I do."

"I do." Donna muttered in disgust.

"I don't!" The Empress cackled. She turned to Rose, leaning down and glaring. "I'm afraid you don't get a say, oh pretty wolf. You're flesh and meat for my little angels. You will howl in the night and I shall take the pure power from within..."

Rose glared up at the Empress. "You can't take anything from me, the Doctor will stop you!"

"You have such faith in your doctor-man! Shame. Now!" She turned around, cackling. "Activate the particles! Purge every last one!" Donna and Lance started to glow. "And… release!" The Huon particles zoomed out of Donna and Lance, swirling down the large hole in the ground, heading straight to the centre of the Earth. "The secret heart unlocks. And they will waken from their sleep of Ages."

"Who will?" Donna shouted, very frightened. "What's down there?"

"How thick are you?" snarled Lance.

"My children, the long lost Racnoss. Now will be born to feast on flesh and bone, on wolf and bride alike!" The sound of scuttling feet and chirping echoed up the large hole; the Racnoss children were climbing up. "The web-star shall come to me." Up in space, the star started to drift down towards the Earth. "My babies will be hungry. They need sustenance, before I can feed them the wolf. Perish the web."

"Use her!" Lance yelped, glaring at Donna. "Not me! Use her!"

"Oh, my funny little Lance!" The Empress cackled. "But you are quite impolite to your lady-friend. The Empress does not approve." The web around Lance became loose, and he tumbled straight down the hole, Rose whimpering and Donna screaming.

"LANCE!" She looked horrified as she watched Lance falling down the hole, her heart hurting badly. She did love that man, even though he betrayed her. Meanwhile, the Empress's star descended over London, confused shoppers and locals looking up in wonder and awe. A little girl grinned and pulled at her mother's sleeve.

"It's Christmas!"

"Harvest the humans!" The Empress had an evil grin on her lips. "Reduce them to meat." Lightning bolts shot out of the star and started to zap innocent people on the streets. The crowds panicked and ran for cover, screaming and shouting to their loved ones. The little girl screamed, petrified and unable to move as a lightning bolt approached her. Her dad swiftly picked her up in the nick of time, running to safety. Inside the chamber, one of the robots sneakily crept up the stairs running around the side of the chamber. "My children are climbing towards me and none shall stop them!" She hissed, turning to the robot. "So you might as well unmask, my clever little doctor-man."

"Oh well. Nice try," The Doctor removed his mask and cloak. "I've got you, Donna! Rose!" He aimed the sonic screwdriver up at the girls and the web loosened.

"We're gonna fall!" Rose cried, looking down at the gaping hole fearfully.

"You're gonna swing!" The Doctor grinned as the girls both swung straight over the hole, both clutching a strand of web. "I've got ya!" He stretched his arms out, catching Rose safely. Donna, however, screamed and swung straight underneath the Doctor and Rose, smashing into the wall with a dull bang. "Oh… sorry!" The Doctor sighed, holding a frightened Rose close. The Empress smirked.

"Thanks for nothing!" Donna shouted, sprawled out on her back below the Doctor and Rose.

"The doctor-man amuses me," The Empress hissed. "My children will have a lovely feast."

"Empress of the Racnoss, I give you one last chance," The Doctor's eyes were dark, ancient and very serious. "I can find you a planet. I can find you a place in the universe to coexist. Take that offer and end this now.

"These men are funny!"

"What's your answer?"

"Oh… I'm afraid I have to decline." The Empress cackled madly.

The Doctor wasn't laughing. "What happens next is your own doing."

"I'll show you what happens next," The Empress hissed. "At arms!" The robots raised their guns once again. "Take aim!" They all aimed at the Doctor, Rose and Donna. "AND!"

"Relax," The Doctor murmured calmly. The robots suddenly relaxed and went limp. Rose grinned, Donna looking around in surprise.

"What did you do?" Rose asked in wonder.

"Oh, just a little sneaky rewiring of a remote control... Guess what I've got, Donna?" He pulled out the remote control from his pockets, grinning. "Pockets!"

Donna looked up incredulously. "How did that fit in there?"

"They're bigger on the inside."

"Robo-forms are not necessary!" The Empress was unimpressed. The robots were gone but her children still lived. "My children may feast on Martian flesh."

"Oh, but I'm not from Mars," The Doctor murmured. The Empress paused, confused.

"Then where?"

"My home planet is far away and long since gone. But its name lives on," He paused, his voice booming and powerful and filled with an odd sadness. "Gallifrey." Donna and Rose gazed at him, both showing the same mixed expression of awe and fright. The Empress went into a fit of rage, boiling with anger at the very mention of the word.

"THEY MURDERED THE RACNOSS!" The Empress screamed.

"I warned you," The Doctor murmured calmly, producing a handful of baubles from his pocket. "You did this."

"No! No! Don't! NO!" The Empress panicked as the Doctor threw the baubles into the air. Some of them flew around the Empress, some smashed into the walls of the corridors and exploded, the water from the Thames River flooding in and rushing through in torrents. Another bauble exploded and started a fire at the Empress' feet. She wailed loudly, grief-stricken as the water flooded into the chamber and went straight down the hole, drowning her children. "MY CHILDREN!"

The Doctor watched in silence, Rose looking at him with concerned eyes. They were all surrounded by fire and water, the river being drained as it swirled down the hole like bathwater seeping down a plughole. "Doctor…" Rose whispered, taking his hand and holding it tightly, looking into his eyes. The Empress was screaming hysterically as she succumbed to the flames.

"NO! My children! MY CHILDREN!"

"Doctor," Rose looked at him kindly. She was terribly worried and she could see a broken man in the Doctor's eyes. "You've done your job. You can stop now." The Doctor couldn't stop at first; he was frozen in place, watching the Racnoss die with dark eyes. He was hiding terrible pain in his hearts, being reminded of the times when he had to watch his own family, friends, colleagues being wiped out in the heat of the Time War, his fists clenching until he looked at Rose with wide eyes, realising she and Donna were in danger.

"Come on! Time I got you both out! Donna! Up here!" He shouted quickly. Rose gave him a quick hug and Donna ran up the stairs to meet them. He escorted both girls up another flight of stairs, each of them soaking wet.

"Transport me!" The Empress shrieked. She teleported herself back up into the web-star, looking _very_ cross. "Oh, they will suffer! So suffer! This planet shall be scorched!"

"But what about the Empress?" Donna asked as they all climbed up a ladder.

"She's used up all her Huon energy," The Doctor explained. "She's defenceless!"

Outside, along a quiet London street, huge army tanks rumbled down the road and aimed their large cannons straight up into the sky. A commander held a radio up to his mouth. "Orders from Mr Saxon. Fire at will!" A soldier controlled the tank as cannon balls shot up at the star from all directions, quickly falling to pieces until it couldn't take any more damage and exploded in the air, bursting into flames and disintegrating completely, along with the Empress. The Doctor, Rose and Donna reached the top of the ladder, panting lightly as they climbed out into the night, grinning and cheering in delight when they saw the Racnoss ship being destroyed. Donna looked around, blinking a few times.

"Just… there's one problem."

"What's that?" The Doctor asked, grinning.

"We've drained the Thames!" Donna and Rose said in unison, bursting into laughter as they looked around at the empty river bed. The Doctor joined them in their happiness, chuckling as he wrapped both arms around their shoulders. Later on that night, after a celebration, the TARDIS materialised across the road from Donna's house. She, Rose and the Doctor stepped out.

"There we go," The Doctor patted the TARDIS. "Told you she'd be all right. She can survive anything."

"More than I've done," Donna sighed.

"Nope!" He scanned her with the sonic screwdriver. "All the Huon particles have gone. No damage. You're fine."

"Yeah, but apart from that… I missed my wedding, lost my job and became a widow on the same day. Sort of."

"I couldn't save him," He and Rose both looked at her sadly, feeling sorry for her.

Donna shrugged. "He deserved it," The Doctor raised his eyebrows at her, and her face softened slowly. "No, he didn't. I'd better get inside… they'll be worried."

"Best Christmas present they could have," He smiled. Rose looked in at Sylvia and Geoff embracing each other through the window, her heart growing sad as she thought of her own mother and father. The Doctor noticed her gaze and gave her a hug, smiling at Donna. "Oh no, I forgot. You hate Christmas."

"Yes, I do," Donna nodded quickly. A grin spread over the Doctor's lips.

"Even if it snows?" He flicked a hidden switch on the TARDIS, a brilliant ball of light shooting out of the top and exploding in the sky like a firework, snow falling gently. Rose looked up with a grin and Donna laughed with delight.

"Can't believe you did that!" Rose reached up to touch the falling snow, giggling softly.

"Oh, basic atmospheric excitation," The Doctor murmured casually, grinning.

"Merry Christmas," Donna smiled. "To both of you."

"And you," The Doctor nodded. "So… what will you do with yourself now?"

"Not getting married for starters," Donna sighed. "And I'm not gonna temp anymore. I dunno… travel… see a bit more of planet Earth. Walk in the dust. Just… go out there and do something."

"Well, you could always…"

"What?"

"…come with me?" The Doctor asked tentatively.

"No." Donna shook her head, smiling at both of them.

"Okay."

"I can't…"

"No, that's fine." He couldn't help feeling a bit disappointed. He really liked Donna. They got off on the wrong foot, but hey, they just defeated the Racnoss together.

"No, but really…" Donna sighed, overwhelmed by the events of today. "Everything we did today… do you both live your lives like that?"

"…Not all the time," Rose shrugged.

"I think you do. And I couldn't. You two are like two peas in a pod anyway. I suppose you like the danger."

"But you've seen it out there," murmured the Doctor. "It's beautiful."

"And it's _terrible_. That place was flooding and burning and they were dying, and you stood there like… I don't know… a stranger. Even Rose was trying to talk to you but you just… looked empty. And then you made it snow! I mean, you scare me to death!"

There was an awkward pause, and the Doctor sighed. "Well, then."

"Tell you what I will do though. Christmas dinner," She rolled her eyes at the expression on the Doctor's face. "Oh, come on."

"I'd love to!" Rose smiled, turning to the Doctor. "Christmas dinner?"

"I don't…" He looked at Rose sadly, hesitant to go inside. "I don't do that sort of thing."

"You did it last year, numpty!" Rose rolled her eyes.

"You might as well," Donna added. "Because Mum always cooks enough for twenty."

"Oh… ah… oh, all right then," he sighed. "But you go first, better warn them. And… don't say I'm a Martian," He gestured to the TARDIS. "I just have to park her properly; she might drift off to the Middle Ages. I'll see you in a minute." He disappeared into the TARDIS along with Rose, heading to the controls and starting the dematerialisation process. Donna watched with wide eyes, frowning and shouting.

"Doctor! DOCTOR!"

The TARDIS engine stopped and the Doctor popped his head out, Rose peeking out too. "Blimey, you can shout!"

"Am I ever gonna see you again? Either of you?"

"I hope so," Rose nodded.

"If we're lucky!" The Doctor smiled.

"Just… promise me one thing, Doctor. Stay with her."

"'Course I will," The Doctor nodded, wrapping his arm around Rose.

"You better mean that, because sometimes, I think you need someone. You need someone to stop you. You need her."

"Yeah," The Doctor replied quietly, pausing and reflecting on how he almost lost Rose. "Thanks then, Donna. Good luck, and just… be magnificent."

Donna smiled and laughed softly. "I think I will, yeah." Rose stepped out and gave Donna a hug. "Look after him, yeah?"

"Oh, I will. You can count on me," Rose giggled. "I hope we see you again soon." She headed back into the TARDIS, the Doctor waving and retreating inside. He closed the door, and instead of the TARDIS's normal dematerialisation, it shot up brilliantly into the night sky instead.

"Show off," Donna muttered, smiling a little sadly and turning around, walking back home. It suddenly all started to hit her, she had just let go of two of the most exciting people in the entire universe. All of the adventures, the madness, she'd never have that at home. But she was safe. That mattered, she supposed. She was safe for now.


	6. The Runaway Bride, Epilogue

The inside of the TARDIS was beautifully decorated for the Christmas period, a large Christmas tree standing to the side, tinsel wrapped messily all around the console. Rose and the Doctor never knew what day it was inside the TARDIS, they could be anywhere in time and space. However, the Doctor insisted on decorating the console room to get into the spirit, after the recent adventure they had with Donna, defeating the Racnoss. Rose stood in the console room on a quiet day, watching the Doctor with a smirk. He was busy repairing the scanner, wearing his brainy specs and muttering complicated words under his breath as he opened up the back of the scanner, fiddling with the wires. Unbeknownst to him, a small sprig of mistletoe was dangling from the ceiling above them both. Rose supposed this was the TARDIS's attempt of being cheeky because she never put it there, and she assumed the Doctor didn't either. "Oh, Doctor?"

"Yes, Rose?" The Doctor looked up at her, his hair slightly mad and his eyes sparkling behind his glasses.

"You know…" She giggled, sitting down next to him. "For someone who's infinitely clever in every single way, you seem to miss the obvious." She pointed up at the mistletoe on the ceiling with a smirk.

"Oh… blimey, er… what's that?" The Doctor shifted a bit, looking nervous. He knew exactly what it was.

"Mistletoe," Rose smiled softly, watching him carefully. "You know the tradition at Christmas, right? When two people stand under mistletoe, they kiss…"

"I know, I just… uh… did you put that there?" He glanced at her, trying to look amused, but _really_ trying desperately to hide his anxiety.

"No, I didn't," Rose answered truthfully, pulling him close and wrapping her arms around him, looking at him tenderly. "Merry Christmas, numpty." She planted a soft kiss on his lips, closing her eyes and letting out a small sigh.

"Rose…" He kissed back tentatively and slowly relaxed in her arms. He wanted to explain his feelings, tell her how scared he was of losing her at the Battle of Canary Wharf, of ruining her, of getting caught up in a relationship and then being split apart from her. "I almost lost you. It made me realise just how important you are to me. You've changed my life, for the better. I never want to lose you... I..." How could he possibly sum this up in words? He had fallen in love. He had a wife before, children, grandchildren, all on Gallifrey, all of them now dead. Everyone who ever mattered to him died in an instant, and it was his fault. Could he really let himself become close to Rose? She was human, after all... wouldn't last forever... Unless he fixed that, somehow...

"I know." She knew how frightened he was and she wanted to look after him. She wouldn't be here forever, unless he figured something out, and she believed he could. He was wonderful like that. She just wanted to make him happy for now, at least. He deserved it.

"I… I love you…" The Doctor whispered after a long pause. His face was a mixture of fright and anticipation, of hope and anxiety. Those three words scared him so much, but as Rose cupped his face in her hands, he couldn't help feeling reassured.

"I love you too."


	7. Smith, Tyler and Jones, Prologue

The Doctor and Rose Tyler strolled down a busy London street, hand in hand, heading towards the Royal Hope Hospital.

"So… explain it to me again?" Rose looked slightly puzzled as she tried to arrange the facts in her head. "Those… plasma coils?"

"Ah! Plasma coils. Small clever little machines. They help with transfers, moving very large objects from one place to another in an instant. Like a teleport, but primarily designed to move large scale objects, not people. It's slightly worrying that I detected a few around this hospital…" He guided Rose to the side of the building and pointed at a small circular device whirring away. "Here's one. I can't override it, there's a deadlock seal around the casing. It's certainly not Earth tech."

Rose looked up into the sky at a dark cloud above them. "And you said it affects the weather, yeah? Electrical storms? That looks like a thundercloud building up there."

"Well spotted!" The Doctor also looked up and smiled. "That's due to the build-up in the plasma coils. Someone, somewhere, is preparing to move this hospital. We need to be inside when that happens."

"You can easily use the psychic paper for that," she pointed out. "I don't know, make it say we're part of the Royal Family, or something."

"Yes, but that's the easy option, isn't it?" The Doctor scratched his head, his thinking face on. "We could end up stuck in an office as one of the workers. No, I reckon we should go in as patients. Or me, at least. You can be the worried sis..." Rose raised her eyebrow, and he grinned. "Okay, you can be the wife. It'll look less suspicious and more convincing, and we'll be at the centre of the action when it happens."

Rose giggled and blushed at the thought of being his wife, smirking widely at him. "Well, yeah, that sounds like a much better idea. Come on, Mr. Smith, let's get you checked in. Bad case of the stomach bug, yeah?"

"Right with you, Mrs. Smith." He winked and took her hand as they walked into the hospital. As soon as he was inside, he clutched his stomach and groaned, putting on a good mask of a man in dire pain.

"Excuse me?" Rose approached a nurse, wearing a mock-worried look. "My husband, he's not well, he needs medical attention…" They were quickly whisked to a small ward and were asked a few questions by the nurse. The Doctor made up that he had a severe pain in his stomach, convincing the nurse without any trouble. They were both left to stay overnight, and with visiting hours over, Rose hid in bed, snuggled underneath the covers. The Doctor didn't need sleep, he rarely had time for it, so he spent the night watching Rose while she rested. A rare sight. She looked very peaceful, he thought. Like an angel. He didn't believe in angels, or any particular religion, in fact. But he believed in _her, _and he promised to himself that he'd look after her. Maybe he could let love blossom, after all. They did kiss. Were there more kisses to come, and what would happen when Rose grew fed up of just having kisses? Would he really be able to go that much further with her? Only time will tell.


	8. Smith, Tyler and Jones, Chapter 1

Martha Jones walked briskly along a busy Chancery Street on a perfectly normal sunny day in London, on her way to the Royal Hope Hospital. Her fine black hair was tied up neatly, her makeup flattering her dark skin tone. She held onto the strap of her bag as she walked, a contented smile on her lips. The chipper voice of a radio announcer on a morning breakfast show caught Martha's attention for short moment, and she listened carefully. "What can happen on an average beautiful day, you never know! Celebrate seasonal changes...On a beautiful sunny day!" Wise words, she thought. Who knows what would happen today? She carried on walking down the street, when her phone suddenly rang.

"You're up early!" Martha grinned as she answered the phone. "What's happening?"

Martha's sister, Tish, was on the other side of the phone, checking herself in a mirror in her messy bedroom. She was pretty, like her sister, and wore her hair in tight curls. "It's a nightmare because Dad won't listen, and I'm telling you, Mum is going mental. Swear to God, Martha, this is _epic._ You've got to get in there and stop him."

"How do I do that?" Martha asked, and rolled her eyes as she held the phone close to her ear.

"Tell Dad he can't bring her!" Tish ordered with a laugh.

"Hold on," Martha's phone rang again. "That's Leo. I'll call you back."

"Martha!" Leo, Martha's brother, was hanging up one of his t-shirts in his wardrobe while speaking on the phone. He looked handsome and cool, the sort of person you'd want to hang out with on a Saturday night. "If Mum and Dad start to kick off, tell them I don't even want a party. I didn't even ask for one. They can always give me the money instead."

"Yeah, but why do I have to tell them? Why can't you?" Martha sighed as her phone rang again. "Hold on, that's Mum. I'll call you back."

"I don't mind your father making a fool of himself in private," Francine, Martha's mother, was packing away her things in the kitchen with a stern look on her face. "But this is Leo's 21st, everyone is going to be there, and the entire family is going to look ridiculous."

"Mum, it's a party; I can't stop Dad from bringing his girlfriend!" Martha's phone rang yet again! She was popular today. "Hold on, that's Dad, I'll call you back."

Clive, Martha's father, climbed into his car as he talked into the phone. He looked similar to Leo, handsome but growing older, with a little stubble on his chin. "Martha? Now, tell your mother, Leo is my son, and I'm paying for half that party. I'm entitled to bring who I like."

"I know! But think what it's going to look like for Mum, if you're standing there with Annalise," Martha pointed out.

"What's wrong with Annalise?" He asked defensively. Annalise was a very young blonde woman, possibly too young for Clive. She was caked in make-up and wore a short dress, revealing a lot of skin. She sat down in the car with Clive, a satisfied smirk on her lips.

"Is that Martha?" Annalise asked in her shrill voice. "Say hi! Hi, Martha! Hi!"

"Hi, Annalise!" Martha replied in mock cheeriness, rolling her eyes. She didn't really approve of Annalise.

"Oh, big kiss! Lots of love, see you at the party babe!" She turned to Clive, smirking. "Now take me shopping, big boy." She snogged him and he laughed. Martha flipped down her phone and wrinkled her nose in disgust, looking up when a tall skinny stranger and a blonde woman suddenly stepped out in front of her.

"Like so!" The skinny bloke took off his tie and showed it to her, while the blonde woman giggled. Who the hell were they? "See?" They both walked off swiftly, leaving Martha very puzzled and a little amused. How very odd. She continued over to the Royal Hope Hospital, soon forgetting about her encounter with the two odd strangers as she glanced up into the sky and noticed a dark, nasty cloud, thunder rumbling quietly. Weird, the weather forecast noted that it'd be clear skies today, she thought. As she reached the entrance, a person dressed completely in black leather with a racing helmet pushed her aside rather rudely.

"Hey! Watch it, mate!" The figure turned to face Martha. She frowned, but the figure simply turned and entered the hospital swiftly. Hesitating for a moment, Martha eventually stepped inside the hospital and fetched her lab coat from her locker. When she touched the locker, however, she received a little electrical shock, which made her frown. A little later, she joined up with the other medical students and Mr Stoker, their teacher, standing at a patient's bedside. The patient was Florence Finnegan, a little old innocent lady.

"I was all right till this morning," Florence explained in a soft tone. "And then, I don't know, I woke up and I felt all dizzy again. It was worse than when I came in."

"Pulse is slightly thready," Mr Stoker turned to his students. "Well, let's see what Britain's finest might suggest. Any ideas, Morgenstern?"

Morgenstern, another fellow medical student, was taking notes rapidly. "Dizziness can be a sign of early onset diabetes."

"Hardly early onset, if you'll forgive me, Miss Finnegan." Mr Stoker smiled, adjusting his tie and trying to look stern.

"Um…" Swales, another medical student, was studying Florence closely. "Could recommend a CT scan."

"And spend all our money," Mr Stoker rolled his eyes. "Jones?"

"We could take bloods and check for Meniere's disease," Martha suggested.

"Or we could simply ask the patient," He told them as if it was the most obvious choice in the world, and turned to Florence. "What did you have for dinner last night?"

"I had salad," Florence answered with a simple smile.

"And the night before?"

"Salad, again."

"And salad every night for the past week, contrary to my instructions," Mr. Stoker explained. "Salt deficiency, that's what. Simple, honest salt." He bid farewell to Florence and took his students across the lobby. "Hippocrates himself expounded on the virtues of salt. Recommended the inhalation of steam from sea water. Though no doubt if he'd been afflicted with my students, results might have been rather more colourful." Martha frowned as she saw the same figure in black leather with the racing helmet standing at a lift, and another _identical_ figure stepped out of the lift! She couldn't stop to investigate, so she followed the other students to another ward and tried to clear her mind. The Doctor was lying in bed, snuggled up and wearing a dressing gown, with Rose at his bedside.

"Morning to you both," Mr Stoker smiled at them. "Now then, Mr Smith, how are you feeling today?"

"Aw, not so bad, still a bit, you know. Blah." The Doctor smiled, and Rose bit back a giggle.

"John Smith, admitted yesterday with severe abdominal pains. Jones, why don't you see what you can find? Amaze me."

Martha moved forward and took out her stethoscope. It was the odd couple from outside! "That wasn't very clever, running around outside earlier, was it?"

"Sorry?" Rose smiled politely, but she didn't have a clue what Martha was on about.

"On Chancery Street this morning. You were both there," She looked at Rose. "You were giggling like a lunatic, and _you_..." She turned to the Doctor. "Came up to me and took your tie off."

"Really?" The Doctor asked, frowning. "What did we do that for?"

"I don't know," Martha shrugged, looking puzzled. "You just did."

Rose shook her head. "Not us, my husband was in bed. I've been beside him all day. Ask the nurses."

"Well, that's weird…" murmured Martha. "Cause it looked like both of you. Have you got a brother? Sister?"

"No, not any more…" The Doctor shook his head. "Just me."

Mr Stoker checked his watch, growing a little impatient. "As time passes and I grow ever more infirm and weary, Miss Jones…"

"Sorry. Right." She pressed the stethoscope to the Doctor's chest, and grew ever so confused. One heartbeat. But she could hear… something else? She moved the stethoscope to the other side of his chest… _two _hearts? No. Impossible. She looked up at the Doctor with wide eyes, and he simply winked at her, while Rose wore a knowing smile.

"I weep for further generations," Mr Stoker sighed. "Are you having trouble locating the heart, Miss Jones?"

"Um, I don't know," Martha shrugged, deciding to keep the double heart beat a secret. "Stomach cramps?"

"That is a symptom, not a diagnosis. And you rather failed basic techniques by not consulting first with the patient's chart." Mr Stoker picked up the chart, dropping it quickly when he received an electric shock.

Martha watched with a frown. "That happened to me this morning."

"I had the same thing on the door handle," Morgenstern added.

"And me, on the lift!" Swales gasped.

"That's only to be expected," Mr Stoker explained. "There's a thunderstorm moving in and lightning is a form of static electricity, as was first proven by…" He waited for an answer. "Anyone?"

"Benjamin Franklin!" The Doctor piqued up with a grin.

"Correct!" Mr Stoker applauded him.

"My mate Ben," he chuckled, looking amused. "That was a day and a half. I got rope burns off that kite, and then I got soaked…"

Mr Stoker's smile faded. This man was utterly mad. "Quite…"

"And then I got electrocuted!" The Doctor was beaming away like a mad man and Rose bit her lip in an attempt to stop giggling.

"Moving on," Mr Stoker turned to one of the nurses, speaking quietly. "I think perhaps a visit from psychiatric," He turned to his students, leading them to the next patient. After many visits to patients and Mr Stoker giving his students lectures, Martha managed to sneak away to the kitchenette to make a call to her sister.

"No, listen, I've worked out a plan," Martha explained quickly. "We tell Annalise that the buffet tonight is one hundred per cent carbohydrate, and she won't turn up."

Tish was walking down the street, not very far from the hospital. "I wish you'd take this seriously. That's our inheritance she's spending. On fake tan. Tell you what, I'm not that far away, I'll drop by for a sandwich and we can draw up a plan."

Martha turned to look out of the window. It was raining heavily outside. "In this weather? I'm not going out, it's pouring down."

"It's not raining here…" Tish turned a corner and looked up at the hospital, her eyes growing wide as she saw a huge black cloud hanging over it. "That's weird! It's sitting right on top of you, I can see it, but it's dry where I am."

"Well, you just got lucky."

"No, but it's like in cartoons," Tish frowned. "You know, when a man's got a cloud over his head."

"But listen, I'll tell you what we'll do…" Martha blinked a few times as she saw the Doctor and Rose walking by the kitchenette, the Doctor still in his dressing gown. They both glanced in, before moving on. Martha shook her head and carried on talking. "We tell Dad and Annalise to get there early, for about 7:30, for Leo to do his birthday stuff. We tell Mum to come about 8:30 or nine, and that gives me time to have a word with Annalise, and…" Swales tapped Martha's arm urgently, looking ever so frightened. "What?"

"The rain!"

"It's only rain!" She muttered.

"Martha…" Tish's eyes widened as she watched the rain. That was _impossible_. "Have you seen the rain?"

"Why's everyone fussing about rain?"

"It's going _up_!" Swales whimpered.

"The rain is going _up_!" Tish pointed out. Martha turned and looked slowly, her mouth falling open slightly. Indeed, the rain was going up instead of down. The building suddenly shook violently, Martha and Swales falling down to the floor, along with most of the objects on the counters and in the cupboards.

The shaking eventually ceased and Martha managed to climb to her feet. "What the _hell_ was that?"

"Are you all right?" Swales asked as she eventually stood up.

"I think so, yeah. It felt like an earthquake! Or…" Or what? What could that possibly have been?

"Martha?" Swales glanced out of the window, eyes wide in fright. "It's night. It was _lunchtime_."

"It's not night!" Martha frowned. Nonsense.

"It's got to be! It's dark!"

Martha looked out of the window, realising where the hospital was, her face falling into a state of pure shock. "We're on the moon!"

Swales shook her head in denial. "We can't be."

"We're on the moon! We're on the bloody _moon_!" The hospital was standing alone on the empty grey craggy surface of the moon. It had to be the moon, because Martha could see a small blue sphere in the distance. It looked like a marble, but Martha knew what it was. It was _Earth_. Patients and workers inside the building were also realising where they were, and started to panic.

Meanwhile, back on Earth, Tish ran straight over to the site of the hospital, but she was stopped from going any further by a policeman. The building was replaced by a huge hole in the ground, emergency vehicles arriving around her. "My God…" She turned to her mobile phone, holding it up to her ear. "Martha? Can you hear me? Martha!" No reply. She turned and headed down the street, feeling so worried that she didn't even notice an odd police box, looking very out of place standing on the edge of the street.


	9. Smith, Tyler and Jones, Chapter 2

Martha darted around the hospital ward, trying to calm down the hysterical patients. People were clinging to each other for support. Everyone was panicking. "All right, everyone back to bed, we've got an emergency but we'll sort it out!" The Doctor and Rose were both watching her, seeming impressed. He slowly reached for the curtain above and pulled it around his bed.

"Might want to turn around, Rose," He murmured as he turned around, removing his dressing gown and putting on his blue suit.

"Nope," Rose smirked, crossing her arms and watching him eagerly as he dressed. He was gorgeous, she fancied the pants off him, why would she turn away?

Martha, meanwhile, went over to the window with Swales, who was sobbing. "It's real…" She murmured, looking out of the window at space. "It's really real! Hold on!" She reached for the window-latch but Swales cried out.

"Don't! We'll lose all the air!"

"But they're not exactly air tight," She argued. She had questions and she wanted answers. "If the air was going to get sucked out it would have happened straight away, but it didn't. So how come?" Made sense, right?

The Doctor swept aside the bed curtain, fully dressed and looking very smart in his blue suit, Rose standing beside him with a very happy smile. "Very good point!" He had been listening the whole time. "Brilliant, in fact. What was your name?"

"Martha," She replied, smiling a little. Whoever this man was, he seemed confident despite being on the moon.

"And it was Jones, wasn't it?" Martha nodded, and the pair approached her. "Well then, Martha Jones, the question is, how are we still breathing?"

"We can't be!" Swales whimpered, tears flowing down her cheeks.

"Obviously we are," The Doctor didn't look at Swales. He didn't have enough time for sobbing. "So don't waste my time. Martha, what have we got? Is there a balcony on this floor, or a veranda, or…?"

"By the patients' lounge, yeah."

"Fancy going out?" He asked both Martha and Rose with a smile.

"Yes!" Rose grinned excitedly, holding his hand.

Martha didn't even know this man, but somehow, she trusted him. "Okay."

"We might die," The Doctor paused, looked at the pair seriously. "I don't want either of you in danger."

"We might not," Martha pointed out.

"She's got a point," Rose smiled.

"Good! C'mon. Not her…" He glanced at Swales, who was still sobbing. "She'd hold us up." They ran up to the patients' lounge, passing all of the panicking people and pushing open the balcony doors, stepping outside.

"We've got air!" Martha grinned, looking around in wonder. "How does that work?"

"I think we should just be glad it does... right, Doctor?" Rose gazed at the Doctor and smiled when he nodded.

Martha's face fell as she looked at the Earth. Her family. "I've got a party tonight… it's my brother's 21st. My mother's going to be really… really…" She tried to hold back her tears.

"Are you okay?" Rose glanced at her, feeling slightly concerned.

"Yeah."

"Sure?" The Doctor murmured in a softer tone.

"Yeah."

"Want to go back in?" Rose offered.

"No way!" Martha shook her head and looked at the view with a brave smile. "I mean, we could die any minute, but all the same… it's beautiful."

"You think?" The Doctor turned to look at the Earth, admiring it.

"How many people want to go to the moon? And here we are!" Martha grinned, stepping forward and leaning against the balcony, completely taking in the view now.

"Standing in the earthlight," Rose smiled, looking at the Earth in wonder. She'd seen the Earth from space before, but the sight was still breathtaking.

"What do you think happened?" Martha asked. Maybe these people knew some answers.

"What do _you_ think?" The Doctor wanted to test her, see if she was as smart as she seemed.

"Extra-terrestrial," Martha replied. "It's got to be. I don't know, a few years ago that would have sounded mad, but these days? That spaceship flying into Big Ben, Christmas, those Cybermen things! I had a cousin. Adeola. She worked at Canary Wharf. She never came home." She sighed sadly.

Both the Doctor and Rose's faces fell at the mention of Canary Wharf. "I'm sorry. We were there…" He glanced at Rose and held her hand tightly. "In the battle." When he almost lost her. They both shuddered, and Rose hugged him tightly.

Martha sighed, trying to draw some confidence in herself. "I promise you, Mr and Mrs Smith, we will find a way out. If we can travel to the moon, then we can travel back. There's got to be a way."

"It's not Smith, that's not our real names." The Doctor studied the balcony, glancing over the edge.

"Who are you then? Both of you?" They weren't _aliens_, were they?

"I'm Rose Tyler." She gave a reassuring smile.

"I'm the Doctor." He continued to examine the balcony, seeming a little distracted.

"Me too, if I can pass my exams," Martha muttered. "What is it, then? Doctor Smith?"

He shook his head. "Just the Doctor."

"How do you mean, just the Doctor?"

"He's just the Doctor," Rose shrugged. "People go along with it."

"What, people call you the Doctor?" Martha frowned.

"Yeah!" He nodded.

"Well, I'm not!" Martha turned away to look at the view, her tone a little stubborn. "As far as I'm concerned, you've got to earn that title."

"Well, I'd better make a start, then. Let's have a look," He found a pebble, picking it up and throwing it out of the balcony. He watched carefully as it hit an invisible barrier and bounced back into the balcony, the air rippling from where the stone hit. "There must be some sort of force field keeping the air in."

"If that's like a bubble sealing us in, that means this is the only air we've got…" Martha's eyes widened. "What happens when it runs out?"

"How many people are in this hospital?" The Doctor enquired.

"I don't know, a thousand?"

"One thousand people. Suffocating." Rose uttered in horror.

"Why would anyone do that?"

"Head's up! Ask them yourself." Above them, gigantic grey cylinder-shaped spaceships floated down carefully to the surface of the moon, arriving not too far from the hospital. Several Judoon were marching out of their spaceships and heading to the hospital. They looked very much like giant threatening rhinoceroses, wearing black suits and helmets, carrying weapons in their pockets. Everyone inside the hospital moved to a window, staring out at the aliens.

"Aliens…" Martha was also staring in shock. "That's aliens. Real, proper aliens."

"Judoon," The Doctor frowned. Of course, he recognised the aliens immediately. Meanwhile, Mr Stoker was watching the Judoon carefully through his binoculars, when Florence Finnegan, the innocent little old lady, waddled in.

"Mr Stoker?" She croaked. "I'm sorry, I didn't know who else to ask, but can you help me?"

Mr Stoker turned, looking a bit exasperated. "I think we've gone beyond aspirin, Miss… ah…"

"Finnegan," She stated. He didn't quite care.

"What are names now when something unnameable is marching towards us across the _moon_? Two more years, I thought… two more years and then retire to Florida. But there is Florida, in the sky!" He looked out towards Earth. "I can see it. My daughter, she's still in university. I am never going to see her again."

"But I need your help, Mr Stoker!" She frowned.

"I can't do anything," Mr Stoker shrugged, sulking a little.

Florence smiled evilly, her tone changing completely. "Oh, I think you can…" She clicked her fingers and the two men clad in black leather and racing helmets walked in. The Slabs.

"What do you two want?" He frowned, glaring at the Slabs. "It's a bit too late to sign for anything."

"These are my lovely boys!" Florence boasted. "I prefer not to get my hands dirty."

"I'm sorry?"

"You see, there are great tests to come, and terrible deeds, some of them my own…" Florence sneered. "But if I am to survive this, I need you."

"What are you talking about?"

"Blood," Florence replied simply. "Specifically, yours." She clicked her fingers again, the Slabs advancing on Mr Stoker.

"What are you doing?" The Slabs held him by the arms and he struggled madly. "What are you doing? Well, let go of me! What the hell! Let go!"

"You see, I was only salt deficient because I am so very good at absorbing it," Florence explained. "Now I need fire in my veins, and who better than a consultant, with blood full of salty fats and vintage wines and mmm, all those Michelin star sauces."

"Who are you?" Mr Stoker looked up at her with wide, very frightened eyes.

"Oh, I'm a survivor, Mr Stoker. At any cost. Look! I even brought a straw." She pulled out a straw, a manic grin on her lips as she approached Mr Stoker, who started to scream. Inside the hospital corridor, people were running around and screaming madly. Martha pushed her way through the crowd into a side room, looking through the window at Earth, peeking slightly above the horizon. She passed Florence as she left. "Have you seen…"

"I'm sorry, I can't!" Martha was too busy to tend to patients. The Judoon entered the hospital, walking straight through the force field. Patients and workers gawped at the aliens, some screaming, some running away, some cowering and trying to find a place to hide. The chief Judoon strode into the main reception and removed his helmet.

"Bo sco fo do no kro blo co sho ro!"

"We are citizens of planet Earth…" Morgenstern uttered bravely. "We welcome you in peace," The chief Judoon suddenly approached him, pushing him against the wall and shining a bright blue light into his face. "Please don't hurt me, I was just trying to help, I'm sorry! Don't hurt me, please don't hurt me." The Judoon pressed a button on his device, playing back Morgenstern's words.

"Language assimilated," The chief Judoon announced. "Designation Earth English. You will be catalogued," He shined a blue light into Morgenstern's face again and marked a cross on the back of his hand. "Category: human. Catalogue all suspects." He ordered the rest of his troops around the hospital, shining the blue light on people, checking their species and marking the right hand of each with a cross, uttering "Human!" as they do so. The Doctor, Rose and Martha hid behind some plotted plants on the mezzanine level, watching the Judoon.

"Oh, look down there!" The Doctor's attention was drawn to a little gift shop in the corner, and he smiled happily. "You've got a little shop! I like a little shop."

"Never mind that!" Rose gave him a nudge to draw his attention back to the chaos below. "What are Judoon?"

"Galactic police," He explained to them both. "Well, police for hire. More like interplanetary thugs."

"And they brought us to the moon?" Martha asked.

"Neutral territory. According to galactic law, they've got no jurisdiction over the Earth, and they isolated us. That rain? Lightning? That was them, using an H2O scoop."

"What's that about 'galactic law'?" Martha frowned. "Where'd you get that from? If they're police, are we under arrest? Are we trespassing on the moon or something?"

"No, but I like that! Good thinking. No, it's more simple. They're making a catalogue, it means they're after something non-human," He explained. "Which is very bad news for me."

Martha frowned. "Why?" She paused as he looked at her. "Oh, you're kidding me." He raised an eyebrow at her. "Don't be ridiculous. Stop looking at me like that."

"Come on, then." The Doctor rolled his eyes, taking Rose's hand and leaving, Martha following quickly.

"Troop five, floor one. Troop six, floor two. Identify human and find the transgressor. Find it," The chief Judoon ordered, his troops marching to their correct floors. The Doctor, Rose and Martha ran quickly through the corridor. "Prepare to be catalogued!"

"Do what they say!" Morgenstern tried to be helpful and restore peace to the panicking patients. "All they want is to shine this light thing, it's all right, they don't mean to hurt us. Just listen to them."

Suddenly, one of the scared patients took a jug from the side and smashed it over the head of one of the Judoon.

"Witness the crime!" The chief Judoon shouted. "Charge: physical assault. Plea: guilty. Sentence: execution." He pulled a gun out of his pocket and shot the patient, causing him to vaporise into thin air. Morgenstern watched in horror.

"You didn't have to do that."

"Justice is swift!" The chief Judoon strode down the corridor, continuing his assignment. Morgenstern flinched and sighed. Inside a random deserted office on a different floor, the Doctor examined a computer with his sonic screwdriver, Rose watching closely. Martha kept a look out in the corridor, entering the room quickly.

"They've reached the third floor," Martha frowned upon seeing the sonic screwdriver. "What's that thing?"

"Sonic screwdriver," The Doctor replied. Martha frowned even more.

"Well, if you're not going to answer me properly!"

"No, really!" The Doctor waved his sonic screwdriver, his tone honest. "It's a screwdriver, and it's sonic. Look."

"What else have you got? A laser spanner?" Martha asked sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

"I did, but it was stolen by Emily Pankhurst, cheeky woman," He chuckled, turning and frowning at the computer, hitting it. "Oh, this computer! The Judoon must've locked it down. Judoon platoon upon the moon… Cause I was just travelling past, I swear… me and Rose were just wandering, we weren't looking for trouble, honestly, we weren't. But I noticed these plasma coils around the hospital, and that lightning, that's plasma coils, been building up for two days now, so I checked in and Rose stayed with me. I thought something was going on inside, it turns out the plasma coils were the Judoon up above."

"But what were they looking for?" Martha asked.

"Something that looks human, but isn't." He replied.

"Like you. Apparently."

"Like me. But _not_ me."

"Haven't they got a photo?" Rose asked.

"Might be a shape-changer," The Doctor sighed, trying to work the computer again.

"Whatever it is…" Martha frowned. "Can't you just leave the Judoon to find it?"

"If they declare the hospital guilty of harbouring a fugitive, they'll sentence it to execution."

"All of us?" Martha asked, eyes wide in horror.

"Oh yes. If I can find this thing first… Oh! Just that they're thick! Judoon are _thick_! They are _completely_ think! They wiped the records!" He looked at the computer exasperatingly. "Oh, that's _clever_."

"What are we looking for?" Rose enquired. "Maybe we could search for the fugitive ourselves?"

"I don't know… we're looking for any patient admitted in the past week with unusual symptoms. Maybe there's a back-up…" The Doctor reached down to fiddle with the computer's hard drive again.

"Just keep working," Martha stepped out into the corridor. "I'll go ask Mr Stoker, he might know." She closed the door and ran down the hospital corridor, knocking on Mr Stoker's office door and entering without waiting for an answer. "Mr Stoker!" Her eyes widened as she noticed his feet sticking out around the desk… and the two Slabs. Florence Finnegan arose, straw in her hand and blood dripping around her lips. She looked like a vampire.

"KILL HER!" She screamed.


	10. Smith, Tyler and Jones, Chapter 3

Martha dashed as fast as she could through the hospital corridor, her mind whirring and her heart pounding. Florence Finnegan was a _vampire_? An alien? The Judoon must be looking for _her_! She met up with the Doctor and Rose quickly, panting slightly.

"I've restored the backup!" The Doctor announced proudly.

"I found her," Martha uttered.

"You what?" He peered down the corridor. The Slabs were coming. "RUN!" He took Rose's and Martha's hands, running with the girls. They sprinted down the stairs, noticing Judoon ahead of them and dodging out of a doorway on the fourth floor. The Slabs were hot on their tales and they skidded around corners, darting through other patients, racing into the radiology room. The Doctor slammed the door and locked it quickly. "When I say 'now', press the button, Martha. Rose, go and help her."

"I don't know which one!" Martha stepped into the control room, looking at the controls in exasperation.

"Me neither! Wait…" Rose pulled out the Operator's Manual. "Maybe this'll help?" They flicked through it manically, trying to find the right instructions. The Doctor pulled the sonic out and whirred it across the radiology machine, whilst the Slabs broke down the door.

"NOW!" Rose pressed a big red button and the Doctor used the machine to zap the Slab with radiation. The Slab fell dead, Rose and Martha watching with wide eyes.

"What did you do?" Martha watched the Slab carefully.

"Increased the radiation by five thousand per cent," The Doctor replied, smiling. "Killed him dead."

"Isn't that likely to kill _you_?" Rose frowned.

"Nah, it's only radiation. We used to play with roentgen bricks in the nursery. It's safe for you both to come out, I've absorbed it all. All I need to do is expel it…" He started to bounce and hop around on one foot. "If I concentrate, I can shake the radiation out of my body and into one spot. It's in my left show. Here we go, here we go… easy does it…" He shook his foot madly. "Out! Out, out,_ out, out_! Ah, ah, ah! It is, it is, it is _hot! _Ah, hold on!" He snatched his shoe away from his foot and flung it into the dustbin. "Done."

"You're completely mad!" Martha watched with her eyebrows raised.

"Right. I look daft with one shoe," He removed his other shoe and chucked it in the bin, grinning madly. "Barefoot on the moon!"

"You're _ridiculous_." Rose giggled softly at the sight of him grinning like an idiot, with no shoes on. Martha rolled her eyes and turned to look at the Slab.

"So, what is that thing? And where's it from? The planet Zovirax?"

"It's just a Slab," The Doctor crouched down to examine the Slab. "They're called Slabs. Basic slave drones, see? Solid leather, all the way through. Someone has got one hell of a fetish."

"It came with that woman, Mrs Finnegan. It was working for her. Just like a servant…" Martha murmured, looking disgusted. The Doctor turned, his eyes widening as he pulled the remains of his sonic screwdriver out of the x-ray machine. It had been fried.

"My sonic screwdriver!"

"She was one of the patients, but…" Martha continued.

"My _sonic screwdriver_!"

"She had a straw like some kind of… vampire!"

"I loved my sonic screwdriver!" The Doctor pouted like a child.

"_Doctor_!" Martha frowned.

"Sorry," He chucked the sonic screwdriver away, smiling. "You called me Doctor."

"Anyway!" She rolled her eyes. "Miss Finnegan is the alien. She was drinking Mr Stoker's blood."

"Funny time to take a snack. You'd think she'd be hiding. Unless… no. Yes, that's it, wait a minute! Yes! Shape-changer. Internal shape-changer. She wasn't drinking blood, she was assimilating it!" The Doctor's face fell in realisation. Florence Finnegan strolled into a corridor, wiping her lips clean. The Judoon approached her.

"Prepare to be catalogued!" The chief Judoon shone the blue light into her face.

"If she can assimilate Mr Stoker's blood, mimic the morphology, she can register as human!" The Doctor explained. "We've got to find her and show the Judoon. Come on!" The three of them ran, but it was too late. The chief Judoon had recognised Florence as human, and drew a cross onto her hand. She looked down at it with a contented smile. The Doctor, Rose and Martha hid behind a water cooler, watching the other Slab as it walked aimlessly down the hallway. "That's the thing about Slabs. They always travel in pairs."

"Like you two?" Martha looked at Rose and the Doctor carefully.

"Like us what?" He frowned a bit.

"I mean, you two are like two peas in a pod."

"I suppose we are…" Rose smiled, blushing.

"Uh. Humans. We're stuck on the moon running out of air with Judoon and a bloodsucking criminal, you're asking personal questions. Come on!" He stepped out from behind the water cooler carefully, followed by the girls.

"I like that," Martha scoffed. "Humans. I'm still not convinced you're an alien," She spoke too soon. They stepped out accidentally in front of a Judoon, who shone his blue light on the Doctor's face.

"Non-human!" The Judoon uttered.

"Oh my God, you really are!" Martha looked at him in shock.

"And again!" The Doctor rolled his eyes and ran with Rose and Martha by his side, the Judoon shooting after them. They dodged the gun's fire and ran up the stairs, managing to lock a door behind them. They had ended up in a corridor, where people were falling to the ground, gasping for breath. Suffocating. "They've done this floor. Come on. The Judoon are logical and just a little bit thick. They won't go back to check a floor they've checked already. If we're lucky."

Martha noticed Swales walking by and stopped her. "How much oxygen is there?"

"Not enough for all these people," Swales looked immensely worried and stressed. "We're going to run out."

"How are you both feeling?" The Doctor turned to Rose and Martha. "Are you both all right?"

"I'm fine," Rose nodded.

"I'm running on adrenaline," Martha grinned.

"Welcome to my world."

"What about the Judoon?" Rose asked. "Won't they suffocate, too?"

"Ah, great big lung reserves, it won't slow them down," He replied. "Where's Mr Stoker's office?"

"It's this way," Martha led the way down the corridor and into Mr Stoker's office. He was lying dead on the floor, his skin an ugly pale grey. "She's gone! She was here!"

"Drained him dry!" The Doctor examined Mr Stoker. "Every last drop. I was right. She's a plasmavore."

"What's she doing on Earth?" Rose bit her lip when she saw Mr Stoker's dead body. Poor bloke, she thought.

"Hiding. On the run. Like Ronald Biggs in Rio de Janeiro. What's she doing now? She's still not safe. The Judoon could execute us all. Come on." He headed straight to the door.

"Hold on," Martha went over to Mr Stoker's body, closing his eyes, and then leaving along with the Doctor and Rose.

"Think, think, think. If I was a plasmavore surrounded by police, what would I do?" He glanced at the MRI sign, and sighed. "Ah. She's as clever as me. Almost."

"Find the non-human!" The Judoon were almost in the same corridor as them. "Execute!"

"Rose, I need you to stay here. I need time," He turned to her, looking very serious. "Martha needs to be with me. You're going to have to hold them up."

"How do I do that?" Rose glanced towards the Judoon at the end of the corridor, looking worried.

"Rose…" He sighed. Words couldn't explain his feelings enough, and there was no time to explain, so he simply framed her face in his hands and kissed her. Martha felt the slightest twang of… jealously? The Doctor turned and ran with Martha afterwards, leaving Rose a little breathless and quite happy. "You need to stay outside this room," He ordered to Martha. "Stay hidden until the Judoon arrive," He stepped into the MRI room, the machine making unhealthy, strange noises. Florence Finnegan was standing proudly at the controls. "Have you seen – there are these things, those great big space rhino things! I mean, rhinos from space! And we're on the moon! Great big space rhinos with guns on the moon! And I only came in for my bunions, look!" He showed his feet to Florence, putting on quite a good innocent act. "They're all right now, perfectly good treatment, I said to my wife, I'd recommend this place to anyone, but then we end up on the moon! And did I mention the rhinos?"

"Hold him!" Florence hissed, the remaining Slab taking hold of the Doctor. Meanwhile, Rose stood bravely as the Judoon approached her.

"Find the non-human!" The chief Judoon ordered. "Execute."

"Listen! I know who you're looking for; she killed another worker. Her name's Florence Finnegan." Rose explained bravely, her heart thumping fast as the Judoon examined her with the blue light.

"Human," The Judoon paused. "With non-human traits suspected! Non-human element confirmed! Authorize full scan. What are you? What are you?"

Meanwhile, the Doctor watched Florence Finnegan as she fussed around with the MRI machine, being held back by the Slab. "That thing, that big machine thing, is it supposed to be making that noise?"

"You wouldn't understand," She muttered.

"Isn't that a magnetic resonance imaging thing? Like a ginormous sort of magnet? I did magnets at GCSE. Well, I failed, but all the same."

"The magnetic setting is now set to 50,000 Tesla." She smiled evilly.

"Ooh," He frowned. "That's a bit strong, isn't it?"

"I can send out a magnetic pulse that will fry the brain-stems of every living thing within 250,000 miles. Except for me, safe in this room."

"But… hold on, hold on, I did geography for GCSE. I did pass that one, doesn't that distance include the Earth?"

"Only the side facing the moon," Florence sneered. "The other half will survive. Call it my little gift."

"I'm sorry, you'll have to forgive me, I'm a little out of my depth. I've spent the past fifteen years working as a postman, hence the bunions – why would you do that?"

"With everyone dead, the Judoon ships will be mine, to make my escape!"

"Now, that's weird…" The Doctor frowned at her. "You're talking like you're some sort of alien."

"Right-o," Florence smirked.

"No!" He gasped.

"Oh, yes."

"You're joshing me."

"I am not."

"I'm talking to an _alien_?" He put on a very good shocked mask. "In hospital? What has the place got an ET department?"

"It's the perfect hiding place. Blood banks downstairs for a midnight feast, and all this equipment I'm ready to arm myself with should the police come looking."

"So, those rhinos, they're looking for you?"

"Yes," Florence smiled. "But I'm hidden."

"Oh. Right. Maybe that's why they're increasing their scans."

Florence's smile disappeared. "They're doing what?"

"Big chief rhino boy, he said, no sign of a non-human, we must increase our scans up to… setting two?"

"Then I must assimilate again." Florence reached into her pocket for her straw.

"What does that mean?"

"I must appear to be human."

"Well, you're welcome to come home and meet the wife!" He smiled. "She'd be honoured. We can have cake!"

"Why should I have cake?" She held up her straw, smirking. "I've got my little straw."

"That's nice. Milkshake? I like banana."

"You're quite the funny man. And yet, I think, laughing on purpose at the darkness," She hissed. "I think it's time you found some peace. Steady him!" The Slab held him tightly as Florence approached.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm afraid this is going to hurt," She cackled. "But if it's any consolation, the dead don't tend to remember!"

Meanwhile, the Judoon marked a cross on Rose's hand. "Confirmed: human! Traces of facial contact with non-human. Continue the search," He handed Rose a slip of paper. "You will need this."

"What's this for?" Rose frowned.

"Compensation." The Judoon strode into the MRI room, Rose meeting up with Martha, both of them looking worried.

"Where's the Doctor?"

"He told me to wait out here," Martha glanced at the Judoon as he entered the MRI room. Both girls peeked behind the Judoon. The Doctor was lying still on the floor, Florence Finnegan crouched over him, hiding her straw.

"Now see what you've done!" Florence put on her innocent old lady act again. "This poor man just died of fright!"

"Scan him!" The chief Judoon scanned the Doctor with his device. "Confirmation: deceased."

"No!" Rose whimpered, staring down at the Doctor. "He can't be!"

"Let me through!" Martha pushed past the Judoon. "Let me see him!"

"Stop. Case closed." The chief Judoon uttered.

"But it was her!" Rose pointed at Florence, looking disgusted. "She killed him! She did it, she murdered him!"

"The Judoon have no authority over human crime."

"But she's _not_ human!" Rose argued, frowning at the Judoon. What a useless police force, she thought.

"Oh, but I am…" Florence tried not to smirk. Her plan could still continue. "I've been catalogued."

"But she's not! She assimil—" Martha paused. "Wait a minute. You drank his blood. _The Doctor's_ blood." She snatched the Judoon's scanner and shone it over Florence.

"Oh, all right!" Florence sneered. "Scan all you like."

"Non-human!" The Judoon announced. Florence's eyes widened.

"What?"

"Confirm analysis."

"Oh, but it's a mistake, surely!" She tried to save herself. "I'm human. I'm as human as they come."

"He gave his life so they'd find you…" Rose whimpered, crouching down next to the Doctor, stroking his cold cheek.

"Confirmed: Plasmavore. I charge you with the crime of murdering the princess of Patrival Regency Nine." The chief Judoon approached her and trapped her.

"She deserved it!" Florence snarled. "Those pink cheeks and those blonde curls and that simpering voice. She was begging for the bite of a plasmavore."

"Do you confess?"

"Confess? I'm _proud_ of it! Slab – stop them!"

The Slab pulled out a gun, but the Judoon shot it first and it disintegrated. "Verdict: guilty. Sentence: execution!" Rose and Martha noticed the warning sign light up: MAGNETIC OVERLOAD. They were running out of time.

"Enjoy your victory, Judoon, because you're going to burn with me!" Florence hissed. "Burn in hell!" She let out a scream as the Judoon disintegrated her. Martha kneeled next to Rose, both of them looking at the Doctor in worry.

"Case closed!" The chief Judoon pocketed his gun.

"What did she mean, burn with me?" Rose looked at the MRI machine fearfully. "She's done something to that machine!"

"Scans detect lethal acceleration of monomagnetic pulse." The chief Judoon stated.

"Well, do something!" Martha frowned. "Stop it!"

"Our jurisdiction has ended. Judoon will evacuate."

"You can't just leave it!" Rose was trying not to panic. "What's it going to do?"

"All units withdraw." The chief Judoon departed with his troops. The warning sign continued to flash.

"What about the air?" Martha watched the Judoon in horror as they left. "We're running out of air! You can't go! That thing's going to explode and it's all your fault!"

"Martha, can you do CPR?" Rose didn't care about the Judoon now, they needed to focus on saving the Doctor.

"I can try…" Martha started to apply the techniques she learnt on the Doctor, pumping his chest with her hands. "One two three four five. One two three four five," She paused. "Wait… two hearts!" She moved to the other side of his chest and began pumping. "One two three four five. One two three four five." The Doctor was revived, he started to gasp and cough. Martha and Rose were both running out of air and looking weak. "The scanner… she did something…"

The Doctor coughed as he crawled over to the MRI machine, staggering up and unplugging it. He gathered Rose and Martha into his arms, looking quite worried as he carried both of them down the corridor. Patients and doctors alike were weak or unconscious due to oxygen starvation. He looked out of the window at the Judoon ships hopefully. "Come on, come on, come on… Come on, Judoon! Reverse it!" It started to rain outside. A grin immediately formed on his lips. "It's raining. It's raining on the moon." In a flash of white light, the hospital disappeared.

It reappeared where it originally stood, on the end of Chancery Street. Tish and the other onlookers gasped as they looked up at the building, everyone immediately running inside to find loved ones. Ambulances from other hospitals arrived, and the emergency care commenced. The Doctor sat on a brick wall by the hospital, examining Rose. "Still feeling light-headed?"

"I think I'm okay, now…" Rose smiled and wrapped her arms around him, relieved that he was okay. "You saved us all. Again. You're wonderful, you know that?"

"Eh. Couldn't have done it without you or Martha." He shrugged, smiling and hugging her tightly in return.

"I told them I represented the human race!" Morgenstern was talking to a large crowd of TV interviewers and camera crew from different news stations. "I told them, you can't do that. I said, you can't do that, we have rights!"

"Martha!" Tish noticed her sister sitting outside the hospital, and immediately gave her a hug. "Oh, God! I thought you were dead! What happened? It was so weird, because the police wouldn't say, they didn't have a clue. And I tried phoning, but I couldn't get through. Mum's on her way, but she couldn't get through, they've closed off all the roads," Martha noticed the Doctor and Rose walking away, towards a strange 1960s Police Box. They both smiled and waved at her. She smiled back, but a truck passed by, blocking her view for a moment. When the truck had passed, the Doctor, Rose and the TARDIS were gone. Tish was still talking. "There's thousands of people trying to get in, the whole city's ground to a halt, and Dad phoned, 'cause it's on the news and everything, he was crying! It's been a mess, and what happened? I mean, what really happened? Where were you?"

Martha was too busy staring at the place where the TARDIS once stood. She could hear the last traces of… engines? But, it didn't sound like a car engine, or a plane engine… no, it sounded different… mysterious… beautiful…


	11. Smith, Tyler and Jones, Chapter 4

Applying her mascara carefully, Martha sighed as she looked at herself in the mirror. She listened to the radio carefully. Every news station and radio station was going crazy over the news about the Hospital, the word was spreading up and down the country. "Eyewitness reports from the Royal Hope Hospital continue to pour in, and it all seems to be remarkably consistent. This is from medical student Oliver Morgenstern."

"I was there…" Morgenstern's timid voice played through the radio. "I saw it happen. And I feel uniquely privileged. I looked out at the surface of the moon. I saw the Earth, suspended in space, and it all just proves Mr Saxon right. We're not alone in the universe. There's life out there: wild and extraordinary life."

Martha went down to the pub that night for Leo's party, and well… it was a mess. A complete mess. Annalise stormed outside, causing a fuss, and Martha felt extremely embarrassed. "I am not prepared to be insulted!"

"She didn't mean it, sweetheart!" Clive sighed exasperatingly. "She just said you look healthy!"

"No, I did not!" Francine stormed out, scowling. "I said _orange_."

"Clive, that woman is disrespecting me!" Annalise clung onto Clive, whimpering and looking quite pathetic. "She's never liked me."

"Oh, I can't think why, after you _stole my husband_!" Francine snarled.

"I was seduced!" Annalise argued quite pathetically. "I'm entirely innocent! Tell her, Clive!"

"And then she has a go at Martha, practically accusing her of making the whole thing up!"

"Oh. 'I've been to the moon'! As if," She snorted. "They were drugged. It said so on the news."

"Since when did _you_ watch the news?" Francine was giving Annalise the most hateful look, her eyes full of rage. "You can't handle Quiz Mania."

"Annalise started it," Tish added. "She did. I heard her."

"Tish, don't make it worse!" Leo muttered, hiding his face in his hands. His party was a nightmare.

"You're talking, Leo! What did she buy you, soap? A _seventy-five _pence soap?" Tish frowned.

"Oh, I'm never talking to your family again!" Annalise whimpered, turning on her heel and storming off down the road. Everyone was shouting over each other.

"Oh, stay! Have a night out!" Francine growled.

"Don't you dare!" Clive shouted. "I'm putting my foot down. This is me, putting my foot down!" He chased after Annalise.

"Make a fool of yourself!" Francine shouted after him. "God knows, you've been doing it for the last twenty-five years! Why stop now?" She stormed off, Tish and Leo following quickly, trying to convince her to go back inside the pub. Martha looked around, now alone and feeling very distressed. Suddenly, she spotted the Doctor. He was standing at the street corner, watching her with a meaningful smile, turning to walk down the alleyway. Martha followed quickly, turning the corner to see the Doctor and Rose leaning against the magnificent TARDIS, looking very out of place against the dark, dreary alleyway. The only slightly interesting thing in the alleyway other than the Doctor was a "VOTE SAXON" poster, but Martha ignored it completely as she grinned at the pair.

"I went to the moon today."

"A bit more peaceful than down here," Rose glanced back at the pub, smiling. "Your family are as bad as mine."

"You never even told me who you both are!" She approached them both.

"The Doctor," He replied. "And my brilliant best friend, Rose Tyler."

"What sort of species? It's not every day I get to ask that."

"I'm human," Rose replied. "But the Doctor is a…"

"Time Lord," The Doctor finished off for her.

"Right!" Martha laughed softly. "Not pompous at all, then."

"I just thought, since you saved my life and I've got a brand new sonic screwdriver which needs road testing…" He smiled, twirling the sonic screwdriver in his hand. "You might fancy a trip with us."

"What, into space?" Martha's eyes widened in excitement. The Doctor nodded, but she considered everything else she's got going on. "I can't. I've got exams. I've got things to do. I have to go into town first thing and pay the rent; I've got my family going mad…" She wanted to go. Desperately. But she couldn't.

"If it helps… we can travel in time, as well…" Rose giggled. "But I wouldn't have too much hope in him, he dropped me home a whole year after I left, once. My mum went _mad_."

"Get out of here!" Martha gasped, grinning. "Come on now, that's going too far."

"I'll prove it!" The Doctor took Rose inside the TARDIS. She watched in wonder as the TARDIS dematerialised, and she waved her hand in the air where it once stood. The TARDIS came back swiftly, Rose and the Doctor stepping back out, the Doctor holding his tie up. "Told you!"

"I know, but…" Martha stared at the tie, eyes wide. She recalled this morning, when they both approached her randomly in the street, and he took his tie off. "But, that was this morning! But, did you… Oh, my God! You can travel in time!" She beamed. "But hold on, if you could see me this morning, why didn't you tell me not to go into work?"

"Crossing into established events is strictly forbidden," The Doctor put his tie back on, smiling. "Except for cheap tricks."

"And that's your spaceship?" She looked up at the TARDIS slowly, reaching out to touch it.

"It's called the TARDIS. Time And Relative Dimension In Space."

"Your spaceship's made of wood…" Martha smirked a bit. "There's not much room. We'd all be a bit intimate."

"Take a look," The Doctor pushed the doors open, Martha stepping inside slowly. She looked around in shock at the large, beautiful interior, running back out again.

"Oh, no. No!" She looked around at the box madly, gasping. "But it's just a box! But it's huge! How does it do that? It's wood!" She peeked into the TARDIS again, Rose and the Doctor watching with a smirk. "It's like a box with that room just rammed in! It's bigger on the inside!"

The Doctor mouthed that last sentence, smirking. "Is it? I hadn't noticed," He closed the door, throwing his coat aside and approaching the console. "All right, then, let's get going."

"But is there a crew? Like a navigator and stuff? Or is it just you two?"

"Just us," Rose nodded. "I haven't got a clue how to fly that thing. Only managed it once, and I don't even remember."

"Yeah?" Martha looked puzzled. "How come you don't remember?"

"Not sure," She shrugged. "I needed to get back to the Doctor. I opened the heart of the TARDIS…" She pointed to a panel on the console. "And… I don't remember the rest."

The Doctor turned to Martha. "I only pick the best to travel with me. This is just one trip to say thanks, then back home," Martha nodded, and he smiled. "Well, then. Close down the gravitic anomalizer! Fire up the helmic regulator. And finally – the handbrake. Ready?"

"Yes!" Rose held onto the console tightly.

"No," Martha replied simply, grinning.

"Off we go!" He pulled the handbrake. The TARDIS jolted, all three of them losing their balance and clinging to the console.

"Blimey, it's a bit bumpy!" Martha laughed.

"Welcome aboard, Miss Jones!" The Doctor shook her hand with a grin.

"It's my pleasure, Mr Smith!" The TARDIS hurtled through the swirling blue vortex, taking them to another wonderful adventure.


	12. The Shakespeare Code, Prologue

The moon lit up the dark alleyways, the murky brown water of the River Thames and the filthy streets of Elizabethan London in the year 1599. Rats scuttled across the cobbled paths, the musky smell of London lingering in the air. People were milling about, gossip in the air. Shakespeare's new play was being performed tonight! The Bard himself was going to make an appearance at the new Globe Theatre! The wind howled across through the excited city, through the cobbled roads, and along All Hallows Street, a young man with dark brown locks and a chiselled face was standing by a house with his trusty lute, serenading a beautiful woman who leant against the wooden balcony of her home.

"Her face was like a winter's moon that lights the traveller's way. Her smile was like a summer bloom that bursts then fades away. My love is night, my love is day. My love, she is my world." Wiggins paused, looking up nervously at his fair maiden to gauge her reaction to his song.

"Such sweet music shows your blood to be afire!" Lilith gasped, her smile coy and delicate. She was utterly captivating, she wore a long red dress, her hair curly, soft and golden, her skin fair and light. "Why wait we on stale custom for consummation?"

"Oh, yes!" Wiggins grinned, heading for the front door of Lilith's house. "Tonight's the night."

Lilith rushed down to the front door to greet her lover, her tone husky and low. "Would you enter, bold sir?"

"Oh, I would," Lilith stepped aside to let Wiggins in. He stepped into the main room, his smile fading immediately. The room was dark and dingy; numerous small fires were burning around the room. The walls were engraved with spiritual diagrams, pictures, symbols, sharp unknown instruments were hanging from the ceiling and dried, dead plants were positioned around a large cauldron. "Lilith, this cannot be the home of one so beautiful. Forgive me, this is foul!"

"Sshh," Lilith pressed her finger to his lips. "Sad words suit not upon a lover's tongue…" She glanced down at his lips, cupping his face in her hands and giving him a deep kiss. When she pulled away, her face transformed. She looked older, hagged even. Her hair was like brittle straw and her teeth were sharp like fangs. Give her a broomstick and a pointy hat, and she'd fit the image of a witch perfectly. "Your kiss transformed me!" Wiggins backed away quickly, terror filling his eyes. "A suitor should meet his beloved's parents. Mother Doomfinger!" An old woman rose from behind Wiggins, with similar features to Lilith, grinning evilly as she grabbed Wiggins. "And Mother Bloodtide!" Another hagged woman appeared, and the three witches converged upon Wiggins, cackling madly as they attacked him.

"Soon at the hour of woven words, we shall rise again and this fleeting Earth will _perish_!"


	13. The Shakespeare Code, Chapter 1

Martha and Rose clung onto the console for dear life whilst the Doctor hopped around madly, pulling levers and turning a wheeled control to try and steady his TARDIS. "But how do you travel in time?" Martha asked, leaning over the console awkwardly to speak to the Doctor. "What makes it go?"

"Oh, let's take the fun and mystery out of everything!" The Doctor frowned, but his tone was playful. "Martha, you don't wanna know. It just does. Hold on tight!" The TARDIS jerked and the three of them fell to the floor. The Doctor and Rose were both in a fit of laughter, Martha raising her eyebrow, thinking they were both completely mad.

"Blimey! Do you have to pass a test to fly this thing?" She asked, pulling herself up.

"Yes, and I failed it!" The Doctor grinned as he grabbed his long sweeping coat, slipping it on.

"We can tell," Rose smirked, her tongue poking out between her teeth.

"Cheeky," The Doctor rolled his eyes playfully and handed her coat over, turning to Martha. "Now, make the most of it," He handed her jacket over. "I promised you one trip and one trip only. Outside this door…" He led the girls down to the doors, stopping and pausing dramatically. "Brave new world."

"Where are we?" Martha asked excitedly.

"Take a look," The Doctor pushed the doors open slowly, letting Martha and Rose out before him. "After you." They stepped outside onto a busy Elizabethan street at night. People were milling about, there was a disgusting smell in the air, and the full moon shone brightly against the inky black sky.

"Oh, you are kidding me!" Martha looked around with the widest grin on her face. She couldn't believe it. "You are so kidding me. Oh my God! We did it. We travelled in _time_! Where are we? No, sorry. I gotta get used to this whole new language. _When_ are we?"

The Doctor looked up, quickly pulling Rose and Martha to the side when a man on the first floor window of his house dumped the contents of a bucket onto the street. "Somewhere before the invention of the toilet. Sorry about that."

Rose grimaced and Martha simply smiled. "I've seen worse. I've worked the late night shift at A&E…" She watched as Rose and the Doctor linked arms, moving through the crowd. "But are we safe? I mean, can we move around and stuff?"

"Of course we can!" The Doctor replied, looking a little amused. "Why do you ask?"

"It's like in the films! You step on a butterfly; you change the future of the human race," Martha replied, looking quite serious.

"Well, tell you what then," He laughed and grinned. "Don't step on any butterflies. What have butterflies ever done to you?"

"What if…" Martha began, as they carried on walking down the street. "I dunno… what if I kill my grandfather?"

"You planning to?" Rose asked, giggling a little. Martha simply shook her head.

"Well, then!"

"This is London?" Martha looked around, deciding to change the subject.

"I think so," The Doctor nodded, observing the people around them. "Right about 1599."

"Oh, but hold on…" An idea popped into Martha's head. Was she safe? "Am I all right? I'm not gonna get carted off as a slave, am I?"

"Why would they do that?" The Doctor looked slightly puzzled.

"Not exactly white, in case you haven't noticed…" Martha gestured to her skin colour, and the Doctor simply smiled.

"I'm not even human. Just walk about like you own the place. Works for me."

"Occasionally," Rose smirked. "Most of the time, we end up in some sort of trouble thanks to you, mister 'walk about like you own the place'."

"Oh, you're definitely feeling cheeky today, aren't you?" The Doctor smirked back at her, raising his eyebrow, their arms tightly linked together. Martha sighed, and he changed the conversation topic. "Anyway, Elizabethan England isn't very different from your time. Look over there!" He gestured to a man shovelling manure. "They've got recycling!" He gestured to two men conversing at a water barrel. "Water cooler moment!" They all looked quite amused as they passed a man who was preaching about the world being consumed by flames. "Global warming. Oh, yes, and… entertainment! Popular entertainment for the masses. If I'm right, we're just down the river by Southwark, right next to…" They turned a corner and came face to face with the Globe Theatre. "Oh yes! The Globe Theatre! Brand new. Just opened. Though, strictly speaking, it's not a globe; it's a tetradecagon – 14 sides – containing the man himself."

"Woah, you don't mean… Shakespeare?" Rose grinned.

"Is Shakespeare really in there?" Martha asked, looking very excited.

"Oh, yes!" He held out his other arm for Martha to take. "Miss Jones, Miss Tyler… will you both accompany me to the theatre?"

"Why, I'd love to," Rose smiled and snuggled into him.

"Yes, Mr Smith, I will!" Martha linked her arm with his and smiled brightly.

"When you get home, you can tell everyone you've seen Shakespeare!" The Doctor grinned cheekily.

"Then I could get sectioned!" Martha replied with a laugh as they entered the theatre. The main performing area was large, jam packed with people, who were cheering at the actors taking their bows onstage. They'd just finished performing a play. "That's amazing!" Martha gawped at the actors, the stage, the audience. "Just amazing. It's worth putting up with the smell!" She observed the actors closely, and laughed. "And those are men dressed as women, yeah."

"London never changes," Rose giggled at the men dressed as women, being reminded of the odd people she'd see walking the streets back at the Powell Estate.

"Where's Shakespeare? I wanna see Shakespeare!" She shot her fist into the air and chanted. "Author! Author!" The Doctor paused, looking at her. Martha looked back sheepishly. "Do people shout that? Do they shout Author?" A man nearby in the crowd picked up on Martha's chant and repeated it, the chant soon spreading throughout the whole theatre.

"Well…" The Doctor looked around with a grin. "They do now!" All three of them looked to the stage excitedly as Shakespeare stepped on the stage. He was scruffy and untidy, wearing a clumsy grin as he took an exaggerated bow, blowing kisses. The audience went wild, cheering loudly.

"He's a bit different from his portraits!" Martha shouted over the wild crowd, watching Shakespeare closely. She was expecting to see a tidy upper class man. Up in one of the private boxes, Lilith watched Shakespeare whilst suspiciously removing a small doll from her pouch.

"Genius!" The Doctor looked up at one of his heroes with an excited tone. "He's a genius. THE genius! The most human Human that's ever been! Now we're gonna hear him speak! Always, he chooses the best words. New, beautiful, _brilliant_ words!" He held his breath in excitement.

"SHUT YOUR BIG FAT MOUTHS!" Shakespeare shouted, the audience laughing and shouting away. The Doctor's face fell, and he looked quite disappointed.

"Oh well."

"You should never meet your heroes," Rose commented with a smile, giving the Doctor a little playful nudge.

"You have excellent taste! I'll give you that," Shakespeare laughed and pointed at a man in the audience. "Oh, that's a wig!"

Meanwhile, Lilith was twirling her hand around the tuft of hair on her doll, watching the stage carefully from her seat in the box. "Wind the craft of ancient harm. The time approaches for our charm."

"I know what you're all saying," Shakespeare began. "Love's Labour's Lost, that's a funny ending, isn't it? It just stops! Will the boys get the girls? Well, don't get your hose in a tangle, you'll find out soon. Yeah, yeah. All in good time. You don't rush a genius," He bowed. Lilith kissed the doll and Shakespeare suddenly jerked upright. "When? Tomorrow night!" The audience went wild again, Lilith looking pleased with herself, the actors looking stunned. "The premiere of my brand new play! A sequel, no less, and I call it 'Love's Labour's Won!'" Everyone applauded, but the Doctor remained quiet. Rose glanced at him wearily, knowing the look on his face too well. Something was wrong. After Shakespeare had gone off stage, the Doctor left the theatre along with Rose and Martha.

"I'm not an expert," Rose frowned. "But I've never heard of 'Love's Labour's Won'."

"Neither have I," Martha looked puzzled, and glanced at the Doctor for answers. "Doctor?"

"The lost play," The Doctor sighed. "It doesn't exist. Only in rumours. It's mentioned in lists of his plays but never ever turns up. No one knows why."

"Have you got a mini-disk or something? We could tape it!" Martha suggested, thinking this was a good idea. "We can flog it. Sell it when we get home and make a mint."

"No," The Doctor replied simply, unable to comprehend the consequences of changing history in that way.

"That… would be bad?" Martha sighed. She still had so much to learn. The Doctor simply nodded and she frowned. "Well, how come it disappeared in the first place?"

"Well…" He began hesitantly, looking at them both carefully. "I was just gonna give you a quick little trip in the TARDIS... but I suppose we could stay a bit longer." Rose and Martha grinned happily, and he couldn't help but grin back at them.

Meanwhile, Shakespeare had entered the Elephant Inn. He sat at the bar whilst a young lady handed him a glass of beer. "Here ya go, Will. Drink up. There's enough beer in this lodgings house to sink the Spanish." She laughed as she served tankards to three other men at the table.

"Dolly Bailey, you've saved my life," Shakespeare sighed as he drunk his beer deeply.

"I'll do more than that later tonight," Dolly flirted with a wink, frowning at the maid who also worked in the lodging. "And you, girl, hurry up with your tasks! The talk of gentlemen is best not overheard."

The maid turned out to be Lilith, and she nodded gently. "Yes, ma'am. Sorry, ma'am."

"You must be mad, Will!" Dick, one of the men at the table, looked at Shakespeare with a frown. "'Love's Labour's Won?' We're not ready. It's supposed to be next week. What made you say that?"

"You haven't even finished it yet!" Kempe, another man at the table, drunk his beer quickly and also gave Shakespeare a frown.

"I've just got the final scene to go," Shakespeare replied wearily. "You'll get it by morning." He began to take another swig of his beer, but his attention was caught by the Doctor, who knocked at the open door.

"Hello!" He waved cheerily, Rose and Martha peeking in next to him. "Excuse me! I'm not interrupting, am I? Mr. Shakespeare, isn't it?"

"Oh no, no, no, no," Shakespeare shook his head and backed away. "Who let you in? No autographs. No, you can't have yourself sketched with me. And please don't ask where I get my ideas from! Thanks for the interest. Now be a good boy and shove..." He paused as he noticed Rose. "Why, what beauty!" Rose felt the Doctor's arm tighten protectively around her, and Shakespeare smirked, his tone flirtatious when he noticed Martha. "Hey, nonny nonny! Sit right down here next to me," He turned to Dick and Kempe. "You two get sewing on them costumes. Off you go."

"Come on, lads," Dolly ushered them away with a smirk. "I think our William's found his new muses."

"Sweet ladies," Shakespeare eyed Martha carefully when she sat down. "Such unusual clothes. So... fitted. Both of you!" He glanced at Rose, judging them both with sexual classifications. "So very... beautiful."

Rose blushed heavily and stuck close to the Doctor, Martha shifting awkwardly in her seat. "Um, verily, forsooth, egads," She replied nervously. She didn't have a clue what to say, and as she looked up at the Doctor for support, he simply shook his head.

"No, no, don't do that. Don't," He held out the psychic paper to Shakespeare. "I'm Sir Doctor of TARDIS and these are my companions, Dame Rose Tyler of the Powell Estate and Miss Martha Jones."

"Interesting, that bit of paper," Shakespeare looked slightly intrigued. "It's blank."

"Oh," The Doctor's eyes widened, looking very impressed. "That's... very clever. That proves it. Absolute genius."

"No, it says so right there!" Martha peered at the psychic paper, confused. "Sir Doctor, Dame Rose Tyler, Miss Martha Jones. It says so."

"And I say it's blank," Shakespeare insisted, looking even more interested and intrigued.

"Psychic paper," The Doctor mumbled to Martha. "Um, long story. Oh, I hate starting from scratch." He sighed as he pocketed the psychic paper.

"Psychic," Shakespeare repeated. "Never heard that before and words are my trade. Who are you exactly? More's the point, who is your delicious blackamoor lady?" He had noticed the Doctor's protective nature over Rose straight away, and felt more attracted towards Martha anyway.

"What did you say?" Martha resisted the urge to glare at Shakespeare. Was he racist?

"Oops. Isn't that a word we use nowadays? An Ethiop girl? A swarth? A Queen of Afric..."

Martha felt her cheeks growing hotter and she growled a little. "I can't believe I'm hearing this."

"It's political correctness gone mad," The Doctor placed a comforting hand on Martha's shoulder. "Um, Martha's from a far-off land. Freedonia."

"Excuse me!" Lynley, a thin man with a deep voice, stepped through to the room, frowning at Shakespeare. "Hold hard a moment. This is abominable behaviour. A new play with no warning? I demand to see a script, Mr Shakespeare. As Master of the Revels, every new script must be registered at my office and examined by me before it can be performed!"

"Tomorrow morning, first thing, I'll send it round," Shakespeare replied wearily.

"I don't work to your schedule, you work to mine! The script, now!"

"I can't."

"Then tomorrow's performance is cancelled!" Upon hearing this, Lilith slipped unnoticed from the room.

"It's all go, 'round here, isn't it?" Rose mumbled, watching the scene with a sigh.

"I'm returning to my office for a banning order. If it's the last thing I do, 'Love's Labour's Won' will never be played!" He stormed off, heading up the stairs, where he bumped into Lilith.

"Oh, sorry, sir!" Lilith purred. "Beg pardon, sir. Mind you don't hurt that handsome head of yours." She gently caressed his head.

"Hold hard, wanton woman!" His voice softened. "I shall return later." He left, Lilith holding up a lock of his hair with a smirk. She quickly ran to the landing and hid in a corner, taking out her doll. "Oh, my mothers, there's one seeks to stop the performance tomorrow."

Inside the witches' house, Doomfinger and Bloodtide gasped.

"But it must be tomorrow!" Doomfinger croaked.

"'Love's Labour's Won' _must_ be performed!" Bloodtide shrieked.

"Fear not," Lilith purred with her silky voice, wrapping Lynley's hair around the doll. "Chant with me. Water damps the fiercest flame..."

"Drowns down girls and boys the same!" Doomfinger and Bloodtide chanted with an evil grin. Lynley strolled down the street, but when Lilith shoved the doll underwater, he began to choke.

"Well, then... mystery solved!" Martha sighed. "That's 'Love's Labour's Won' over and done with. Thought it might be something more, you know... more mysterious."

"I agree," Rose frowned. "We never have adventures this simple. There's always something else going on." Before Rose could say anything else, they heard a loud scream, rushing outside to the source. Lynley was on the floor, spitting up water.

"It's that Lynley bloke!" Martha gasped. "What's wrong with him?"

Other people who heard the scream were gathering, and the Doctor pushed past them. "Leave it to me, I'm a doctor." He crouched at Lynley's side, Rose close behind him.

"So am I, near enough." Martha muttered, going to Lynley's side quickly.

Meanwhile, Lilith slowly removed the doll from the water. "Now to halt the vital part. Stab the flesh... and stop the heart," She stabbed the doll with a large pin. "Eternal sleep is thine!" She ripped the head off with a vicious growl. Outside, Lynley fell limp, drawing his last choking breath and dying.

"Gotta get the heart going!" Martha listened for the heartbeat. "Mr Lynley, c'mon, can you hear me? You're gonna be all right," She prepared to start mouth-to-mouth resuscitation when water gushed from Lynley's mouth. "What the hell is that?"

"I've never seen a death like it," The Doctor frowned. "His lungs are full of water, he drowned and then... I dunno, like a blow to the heart. An invisible blow," He stood quickly and addressed Dolly. "Good mistress, this poor fellow has died from a sudden imbalance of the humours. A natural if unfortunate demise. Call a constable and have him taken away."

"Yes, sir!" Dolly nodded, looking worried. Lilith slipped into the crowd, her voice soft and innocent.

"I'll do it, ma'am!" She walked away with a satisfied smirk. The Doctor crouched down again with a furrowed brow, examining the body.

"Why are you telling them that?" Rose asked quietly. "He didn't die naturally."

"This lot still have got one foot in the Dark Ages," The Doctor explained, Martha listening carefully. "If I tell them the truth, they'll panic and think it was witchcraft."

"Okay, what was it, then?" Rose frowned.

The Doctor looked at her with a sigh. "Witchcraft."


	14. The Shakespeare Code, Chapter 2

Lilith, Bloodtide and Doomfinger were gathered around a bubbling cauldron in their house, each of them looking eager. "The potion is prepared…" Bloodtide whispered with a rough voice. "Now take it."

"Magic words for the playwright's fevered mind!" Doomfinger exclaimed with a cackle.

"Shakespeare will release us! The mind of a genius will unlock the tide of blood." Bloodtide said in a hushed voice.

"Upon this night, the work is done," Lilith spoke softly in her sweet, silky voice. "A muse to pen 'Love's Labour's Won'!"

Meanwhile, the Doctor, Rose and Martha went back into the lodgings, each of them feeling odd after seeing such an unusual death. "I got you a room, Sir Doctor," Dolly smiled. "You, Miss Jones and Miss Tyler are just across the landing." She left, and Shakespeare entered with a weary sigh.

"Poor Lynley. So many strange events. Not least of all, this land of Freedonia where a woman can be a doctor?" The idea was completely preposterous to Shakespeare.

"Where a woman can do what she likes," Martha replied with her eyebrows raised.

"And you, Sir Doctor. How can a man so young have eyes so old?" Shakespeare asked, looking at him with an intrigued expression.

"I do a lot of reading," The Doctor shrugged.

"A trite reply. Yeah, that's what I'd do," He glanced between the Doctor and Rose. "What's in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. One of my better lines. Yet, Sir Doctor, that does not seem to apply to you. You're besotted with her, such a sweet lady. And she seems to trust you with her life, yet she doesn't know you entirely," Rose was blushing furiously and the Doctor looked at her with a slight smile. Shakespeare turned to Martha, looking at her closely. "And you, you look at the pair of them like you're surprised they exist. They're as much of a puzzle to you as they are to me."

"I think we should say good night." Martha couldn't stand the tension any longer, and she left without another word.

"I must work," Shakespeare stood with a sigh. "I have a play to complete. But I'll get my answers tomorrow, Doctor, and I'll discover more about you, your sweet Rose and beautiful Martha, and why this constant performance of yours."

"All the world's a stage," The Doctor murmured as he approached the doorway.

"Hm. I might use that," Shakespeare smiled. "Good night, Doctor. Miss Tyler."

"Good night," Rose murmured, heading to their room.

"Nighty-night, Shakespeare." The Doctor followed Rose into their room. Martha was already there, looking around with a frown. The room was quite small, bare and dark. There was a single bed, and a double bed. Both beds didn't look very comfortable.

"It's not exactly five-star, is it?" Martha looked around, unimpressed.

"It'll do," Rose shrugged. "I've seen worse hotel rooms back home."

"I haven't even got a toothbrush," Martha glanced awkwardly at the sink and mirror in the corner of the room, wondering how people coped without hygiene in these times.

"Ooh!" The Doctor patted his pockets, diving in and pulling out two brushes, chucking one each to Rose and Martha. "Contains Venusian spearmint."

"So, who's going where?" Martha asked, and frowned immediately. Stupid question. She sat down on the single bed and sighed.

Rose made herself comfortable on the double bed and looked at the Doctor expectantly. "Come on, Time Lord," She rolled her eyes when the Doctor hesitated, trying to find the most comfortable patch of flooring available. "I'm not letting you sleep on the floor."

The Doctor carefully moved into the duvet with her, and she shifted, unable to get comfortable. "Oh, come here…" He opened his arms and pulled her in for a cuddle, and she smiled softly as she rested her head against his chest. That was better.

Martha watched them both with a very slight smile. She sort of fancied the Doctor... Who wouldn't? He's tall, handsome, and he travels through time... but he's taken. Rose obviously made him _very_ happy. You couldn't help but smile. "So, magic and stuff! That's a surprise. It's a little bit Harry Potter."

"Wait till you read book seven," The Doctor laughed. "Oh, I cried."

"But is it real, though?" Martha frowned. "I mean, witches, black magic and all that, it's real?"

"'Course it isn't!" The Doctor replied, rolling his eyes.

"Give her a break, silly…" Rose gave the Doctor a little nudge, smiling. "She's only just started to believe in time travel."

"Thanks, Rose," Martha sighed, smiling.

"Looks like witchcraft, but it isn't. Can't be." The Doctor shook his head. "There's such a thing as psychic energy but a human couldn't channel it like that. Not without a generator the size of Taunton and I think we'd have spotted that." He sighed and looked down at Rose. "No. There's something I'm missing. Something really close, staring me right in the face and I can't see it."

"Maybe you're not looking hard enough. Maybe they're aliens? Aliens who can do something similar to magic?" Rose suggested softly, smiling at him.

"Rose Tyler, you always know exactly the right things to say," He smiled tenderly, blew out the candle and snuggled with her underneath the duvet. "Good night, you two."

"Good night," Martha replied, wrapping the duvet around herself and falling asleep.

"Good night," Rose whispered, taking a chance and cupping his cheek with one hand, giving him a soft kiss on the lips. The Doctor sighed happily and kissed her gently in return.

"I love you," The Doctor whispered, still feeling nervous about letting her through the hundreds of barriers he built to keep romantic relationships out of the picture.

"I love you too," Rose whispered with a smile, giving him a comforting kiss on the cheek and settling against him, falling asleep in his arms. He watched with a soft smile. He didn't need to sleep. His mind wandered to a line which stood out to him in one of Shakespeare's sonnets, as he watched Rose snoozing against his chest. 'For nothing this wide universe I call, save thou, my rose; in it thou art my all.' In modern English, it simply meant, 'For I call this whole universe nothing, except you, my rose; in this universe you are my everything.' True words. He felt very happy with Rose in his arms. He had someone to hold. Someone to love.

Meanwhile, Lilith carefully spied on Shakespeare through his window, levitating and opening the window from the outside. She carefully blew the fumes of her potion towards him as he wrote. He inhaled, coughed and fell unconscious immediately. "Bind the mind and take the man!" Lilith entered the room and raised her marionette. "Speed the words to writer's hand." Shakespeare jerked up, completely out of his control. As Lilith moved the arm of her puppet, he wrote. The Doctor was watching Rose as she slept, feeling wide awake. Dolly walked into Shakespeare's room, clutching her broom tightly after Lilith finished with the puppet.

"Will?" Dolly smiled. "Finished cleaning just in time for your special treat," She stopped and her smile faded when she saw Lilith. "Oh, aye. I'm not the first then."

"I'll take that to aid my flight and you shall speak no more this night!" Lilith snarled as her face transformed into the 'witch' version. She snatched the broom and Dolly screamed. Hearing the scream, the Doctor quickly tapped Rose to wake her.

"Hmmm?" Rose yawned and blinked as she woke. Martha was also stirring too from the commotion. "What's wrong?"

"Trouble." He jumped out of bed and ran towards Shakespeare's room. Rose and Martha climbed out of bed and followedquickly.

Shakespeare woke back up with a start, glancing at the Doctor, then Rose, Martha, down to Dolly's body. How did she get there? "Wha'? What was that?"

Rose ran towards the window, her eyes widening when she saw a silhouette of a… it must've been a _witch_, flying on a broom!

"Her heart gave out…" The Doctor sighed as he examined the body.

"She died of fright," Martha observed.

"Doctor?" Rose bit her lip. The Doctor joined her at the window, wrapping his arm around her shoulder, looking concerned.

"What did you see?"

"A witch."

Dawn soon arrived, a cockerel crowing outside as the sun rose. The Doctor, Martha and Rose sat with Shakespeare at his desk. "Oh, sweet Dolly Bailey," He sighed. "She sat out three bouts of the plague in this place. We all ran like rats. But what could have scared her so? She had such enormous spirit."

"Rage, rage against the dying of the light," The Doctor quoted.

"I might use that," Shakespeare smiled.

"You can't. It's someone else's" He replied with a chuckle.

"But the thing is," Rose frowned. "Lynley drowned on dry land, Dolly died of fright and they were both connected to you."

"You're accusing me?" Shakespeare frowned back at her.

"No, but I saw a witch… big as you like, flying, cackling away. I'm sure it was a witch!" Rose insisted.

"And you've written about witches, haven't you?" Martha asked.

"I have?" Shakespeare replied, looking puzzled. "When was that?"

"Not, not quite yet," The Doctor murmured in a low voice.

"Peter Streete spoke of witches," Shakespeare shrugged.

"Who's Peter Streete?" asked Rose, looking confused.

"Our builder," He replied. "He sketched the plans to the Globe."

"The architect. Hold on," The Doctor's mind whirred as he tried to connect loose ends. It suddenly clicked and he slammed his fist on the table. "The architect! The architect! The Globe! Come on!" They all rushed off quickly to the Globe. It was empty, so the Doctor could step directly into the pit and observe the structure. "The columns there, right? 14 sides. I've always wondered but I never asked… tell me, Will, why 14 sides?"

"It was the shape Peter Streete thought best," Shakespeare replied with a shrug. "That's all. Said it carried the sound well."

"Why does that ring a bell? 14…" The Doctor ran his fingers through his hair, a habit he developed whenever he was faced with a complex problem.

"There are 14 lines in a sonnet," Rose pointed out.

"So there is!" The Doctor grinned and clapped his hands, pacing the pit. "Good point, Rose. Words and shapes following the same design. 14 lines, 14 sides, 14 facets… oh, my head. Tetradecagon… think, think, think! Words, letters, numbers, lines!"

"This is just a theatre," Shakespeare sighed.

"Oh, but a theatre's magic, isn't it? You should know!" The Doctor exclaimed. "Stand on this stage, say the right words with the right emphasis at the right time… oh, you can make men weep, or cry with joy, change them! You can change people's minds just with words in this place! And if you exaggerate that…"

"It's like your police box!" Martha pointed out. "Small wooden box with all that power inside!"

"Oh. Oh, Martha Jones, I like you," The Doctor grinned. "Tell you what, though. Peter Streete would know. Can I talk to him?"

"You won't get an answer," Shakespeare shook his head. "A month after finishing this place… he lost his mind."

"Why?" Rose asked. "What happened?"

"Started raving about witches, hearing voices, babbling. His mind was addled," He replied.

The Doctor paused. "Where is he now?"

"Bedlam."

"What's Bedlam?" Martha frowned.

"Bethlem Hospital," Shakespeare replied, grimacing slightly. "The madhouse."

"We're gonna go there. Right now. Come on." He led the way out of the theatre, followed by Martha, Rose and Shakespeare.

"Wait! I'm coming with you. I want to witness this at first hand!" Shakespeare paused as he spotted two actors entering the theatre. He handed them the finished play, the one which Lilith made him write. "Ralph, the last scene as promised. Copy it, hand it round. Learn it. Speak it. Back before curtain up. Remember, kid, project. Eyes and teeth. You never know, the Queen might turn up," He turned to follow the others towards Bedlam, muttering to himself. "As if. She never does," He caught up with the others, smiling at Martha. "So, tell me of Freedonia, where women can be doctors, writers, actors."

"This country's ruled by a woman," Martha muttered, a little irritated.

"Ah, she's royal. That's God's business. Though you are a royal beauty."

"Whoa, Nelly!" Martha stopped, frowning. "I know for a fact you've got a wife in the country."

"But Martha, this is Town," Shakespeare replied, a smirk playing on his lips.

"Come on," The Doctor rolled his eyes. "We can all have a good flirt later."

"I'd like that," Rose nudged him with a grin.

"Is that a promise, Doctor?" Shakespeare raised his eyebrows, smirking widely.

"Oh, 57 academics just punched the air," The Doctor muttered exasperatingly. "Now move!"

Meanwhile, inside the Globe Theatre, Kempe and Dick were onstage, reading over the script. "Love's Labour's Won…" Dick looked at the script hesitantly. "I don't think much of sequels. They're never as good as the original."

"Have you seen this last bit?" Kempe frowned as he read the last few lines. "He must have been dozing off when he wrote that. I don't even know what it means."

"Well, that goes for most of his stuff," Dick sighed. "Ah, but at least it's my speech. Ah, I get centre-stage…" He began to read the script aloud. "The light of Shadmock's hollow moon doth shine on to a point in space betwixt Dravidian shores…" Suddenly, a strong gust of wind arose from nowhere.

"What was that?"

Dick shrugged and carried on reading. "Dravidian shores linear 5-9-3-0-1-6…"

Back in the witches' house, Doomfinger watched the actors through the cauldron, hissing. "A spirit stirs the ether. But too soon. Too soon!"

"Not to fear, my mothers…" Lilith smiled. "It is merely a rehearsal of what's to come."

"…and strikes the fulsome grove of Rexel 4." Dick finished his sentence, looking up and gasping as a dark, shadowy wraith-like figure appeared in front of them.

"By all the saints, it's a spirit!" Kempe gasped as the creature shrieked. "It's a vile shade." The creature moved towards them, but dissipated quickly. "I think we should never speak of this again else we'll end up in Bedlam ourselves."

Meanwhile, The Doctor, Rose, Martha and Shakespeare walked uneasily through the halls of Bedlam. Some patients were screaming, others were moaning and thrashing madly at the bars of the cells in which they were contained in. "Does my lord, Doctor, wish some entertainment while he waits?" The Jailer asked, smirking. "I'd whip these madmen. They'll put on a good show for 'ya. Bandog and Bedlam!"

"No, I don't!" The Doctor looked a little horrified at the thought.

"Wait here, my lords, while I make him decent for the ladies." The Jailer walked away, Martha looking around in shock.

"So this is what you call a hospital, yeah? Where the patients are whipped to entertain the gentry? And you put your _friend_ in here?"

"Oh, and it's all so different in Freedonia!" Shakespeare muttered.

"But you're clever!" Rose frowned. "Do you honestly think this place is any good?"

"I've been mad," Shakespeare growled. "I've lost my mind. Fear of this place set me right again. It serves its purpose."

"Mad in what way?" Martha looked a little puzzled.

"You lost your son," The Doctor murmured softly.

"My only boy," Shakespeare confirmed. "The Black Death took him. I wasn't even there."

"I didn't know…" Martha looked at him sheepishly. "I'm sorry."

"It made me question everything… The futility of this fleeting existence. To be or not to be…" He paused, smiling a little. "Oh, that's quite good."

"You should write that down," Rose smirked.

"Hm, maybe not. A bit pretentious?" The Jailer called them down to the cell, and they all looked in at Peter Streete.

"They can be dangerous, m'lord. Don't know their own strength."

"I think it helps if you don't whip them!" The Doctor frowned at him. "Now get out!" The Jailer grumbled as he left, the Doctor approaching Peter slowly. Peter was an old man, his hair thin and greasy, his skin an ugly grey. His eyes were an eerie cloudy green and he wore dirty rags. "Peter? Peter Streete?"

"He's the same as he was," Shakespeare watched his friend with a slight grimace. "You'll get nothing out of him."

"Peter?" The Doctor carefully placed his hand on Peter's shoulder. Peter suddenly jerked his head up to stare at the Doctor with wild glassy eyes. It seemed like he wanted to say something… but he couldn't speak. In the witches' house, Lilith sensed something wrong.

"What is this? I must see…" She peered into the cauldron, looking at the Doctor closely. "That stranger, he was at the inn with Shakespeare. I thought then he smelt of something new."

"Now he visits the madhouse!" Bloodtide gasped. "The architect!"

"Peter, I'm the Doctor…" He placed his fingertips along Peter's face carefully. "Go into the past, one year ago. Let your mind go back, back to when everything was fine and shining. Everything that happened in this year since happened to somebody else. It was just a story. A winter's tale. Let go. Listen. That's it, just let go…" He carefully laid Peter down in his cot. "Tell me the story, Peter. Tell me about the witches."

"Who is this Doctor?" Lilith hissed. "Why does he come now at our time of glory? Doomfinger, transport yourself. Doom the Doctor. Doom his hide."

"Witches spoke to Peter…" Peter whispered, his eyes mad and wild. "In the night, they whispered. Got Peter to build the Globe to their design. _Their_ design! The 14 walls – always 14. When the work was done…" He laughed madly. "They sapped poor Peter's wits."

"Where did Peter see the witches? Where in the city?" The Doctor crouched, Martha, Rose and Shakespeare watching carefully. "Peter, tell me. You've got to tell me, where were they?"

"All Hallows Street…" Peter gasped, looking up in fright as Doomfinger appeared next to the Doctor.

"Too many words!" She hissed, the Doctor quickly moving over to Martha and Rose, standing protectively in front of them.

"What the hell?" Martha frowned at Doomfinger.

"Be careful, Doctor…" Rose mumbled, giving his hand a squeeze.

"Just one touch of the heart!" Doomfinger grinned madly as she brushed her hand against Peter's chest. The Doctor shouted but it was too late, Peter immediately died at the touch of the witch.

"Witch!" Shakespeare cried. "I'm seeing a witch!"

"Who would be next, hmmm?" Doomfinger cackled. "Just one touch," Lilith and Bloodtide watched the scene unfolding through their cauldron, grinning evilly. "Oh, oh, I'll stop your frantic hearts! Poor, fragile mortals."

"Let us out!" Martha shouted through the door. "Let us out!"

"That's not gonna work," The Doctor said quickly. "The whole building's shouting that."

"Who will die first, hmm?" Doomfinger motioned with her finger, pointing at each of them.

"Well, if you're looking for volunteers," The Doctor stepped forward, much to the horror of Rose and Martha.

"Doctor!" Rose whimpered, looking absolutely terrified. "No!"

"No!" Martha shouted. "Don't!"

"Doctor!" Shakespeare frowned. "Can you stop her?"

"No mortal has power over me!" Doomfinger cackled.

"Oh, but there's a power in words…" The Doctor furrowed his brow as he thought. His brain was whirring like a super computer. "If I can find the right one… If I can just _know_ you…"

"None on Earth has knowledge of us," Doomfinger set her eyes on her prey, ready to kill.

"Then it's a good thing I'm here," The Doctor stood bravely, diving into his spectacular knowledge to try and identify her species. "Now think, think, think… humanoid female, uses shapes and words to channel energy… ah, 14! That's it! 14! The 14 stars of the Rexel planetary configuration! Creature, I name you _Carrionite_!"

Doomfinger wailed and disappeared. Martha slowly stepped forward, frowning. "What did you do?"

"I named her. The power of a name. That's old magic," He replied with a shrug.

"But I thought there was no such thing as magic?" Rose asked, holding his hand and giving it a squeeze.

"Well, it's just a different sort of science," He explained. "You lot, you chose mathematics. Given the right string of numbers, the right equation, you can split the atom. Carrionites use words instead."

"Use them for what?" asked Shakespeare, very puzzled and horrified.

The Doctor frowned. "The end of the world."


	15. The Shakespeare Code, Chapter 3

Doomfinger returned to the witches' house quickly, wheezing away, her eyes wide and wild. Her encounter with the Doctor had rattled her completely. "He knows us! He spoke our name!"

"Then he will know death!" Lilith cried. "He will perish at my hand. My mothers, the time approaches. You must away to the Globe. Go! I will join you as soon as this Doctor screams his last!"

"The Carrionites disappeared way back at the dawn of the universe," The Doctor explained to Rose, Martha and Shakespeare in a serious tone. "Nobody was sure if they were real or legend."

"Well, they're definitely real," Rose sighed. "We know that much."

"But what do they want?" Martha frowned.

"A new empire on Earth," The Doctor replied, grimacing a little. "A world of bones and blood and witchcraft."

"But _how_?" Rose asked. "How are they going to change the world?"

"I'm looking at the man with the words," The Doctor's eyes darted over to Shakespeare, who shuffled nervously on the spot.

"Me? But I've done nothing!"

"Hold on, though!" Rose looked a little confused. "What were you doing last night, when that Carrionite was in the room?"

"Finishing the play," Shakespeare replied with a shrug.

"What happens on the last page?" The Doctor asked, frowning deeply.

"The boys get the girls," Shakespeare sighed. "They have a bit of a dance. It's all as funny and thought provoking as usual… except those last few lines. Funny thing is, I don't actually remember writing them."

"That's it!" The Doctor clapped his hands in realisation. "They used you. They gave you the final words. Like a spell, like a code. 'Love's Labour's Won' – it's a _weapon_! The right combination of words, spoken at the right place with the shape of the Globe as an energy converter! The play's the thing! And yes, you can have that."

Meanwhile, Dick stepped onto the stage of the Globe Theatre with a smile as the opening fanfare played. He looked out at the eager audience, fully dressed in costume, and began the play. "We left the lovers of Navarre by cruel chance separated; none to claim his heart, their labour's lost. Now they will find Love's Labour's Won!" The audience cheered and applauded. Doomfinger and Bloodtide were watching the play quietly from their private box, waiting patiently for their plan to unfold.

"All Hallows Street!" The Doctor peered at a map of London, pointing to the correct street. "There it is. Martha, Rose, we'll track them down. Will, you get to the Globe. Whatever you do, stop that play!"

"I'll do it," Shakespeare stood bravely and shook the Doctor's hand. "All these years, I've been the cleverest man around. Next to you, I know nothing."

"Oh, don't complain," Rose grinned, giggling softly. "We feel the same way."

"I'm not complaining," Shakespeare smiled. "It's marvellous. Good luck, Doctor."

"Good luck, Shakespeare," The Doctor headed to the door with a grin. "Once more unto the breach!"

"I like that," Shakespeare paused, recognising the line. "Wait a minute… that's one of mine."

"Oh, just shift!" The Doctor laughed, leading Rose and Martha out of the building. Meanwhile, more actors stepped on stage, Dick cradling a dying Kempe, acting to the audience.

"The eye should have contentment where it rests. This spun-out year I watch on, groaning sick…" Up in the box, the Carrionites were gathered around a small crystal ball, which was glowing with an eerie red light.

"Patience, my sisters…" Bloodtide croaked. "Patience."

"Mewling poor drooped men in stenched beds…" Dick continued, but he stopped and stared in shock when Shakespeare shoved the doors open and ran onstage.

"Stop the play!" He shouted, panting slightly. "I'm sorry, ladies and gentlemen, but stop! This performance must end immediately!"

"The wordsmith!" Bloodtide shrieked in horror, turning to the other witches.

"Fear not!" Doomfinger reached into her pocket and took out the doll they used to control Shakespeare, smirking a little. "I have the doll."

"I'm sorry! You'll get a refund," Shakespeare winced when the audience booed. "But this play must not be performed!" Doomfinger tapped the doll with her hand, and Shakespeare suddenly fell unconscious.

"Is he drunk or what?" Kempe muttered irritably.

"Get him off the stage!" Dick whispered harshly, the audience laughing as Shakespeare was carried off the stage by the actors.

"You must forgive our irksome Will," Kempe spoke to the audience, trying to regain their attention, feeling highly embarrassed by Shakespeare's interruption. "He's been on the beer and feeling ill."

"There is naught can stop us now," Doomfinger relaxed, cackling away with the other two witches. Meanwhile, the Doctor, Rose and Martha reached All Hallows Street. It was a quiet street lined with several untidy houses.

"All Hallows Street," The Doctor looked around madly. "But which house?"

"The thing is, though… am I missing something here?" Martha frowned, looking puzzled. "The world didn't end in 1599. It just didn't. Look at me and Rose; we're living proof."

"Oh, how to explain the mechanics of the infinite temporal flux…" The Doctor ran his fingers through his hair, trying to think of a simple example. "I know! Back to the Future! It's like Back to the Future!"

"The film?"

"No, the novelisation," He replied sarcastically. "Yes, the film. Marty McFly goes back and changes history."

"And he starts fading away…" Rose gasped in realisation. "Oh my God, are we going to fade away?"

"Both of you, and the entire future of the human race," The Doctor replied. "It ends right now in 1599 if we don't stop it. But which house?" Before he could say anything else, the door to Lilith's house opened with a creak. "Ah, make that _witch_ house," They entered the house hesitantly and stepped into the dark, damp room with a bubbling cauldron, several instruments and tools hanging from the ceiling. Lilith was waiting for them, standing over her cauldron with pride. "I take it we're expected."

"Oh, I think Death has been waiting for you a very long time," Lilith purred.

"Right then, it's my turn," Martha stepped forward bravely. "I know how to do this," She pointed at Lilith and spoke with a confident tone. "I name thee, Carrionite!" She waited for a reaction but Lilith simply stood with a smirk, completely unaffected. "What did I do wrong? Was it the finger?"

"The power of a name works only once. Observe," She pointed at Martha. "I gaze upon this bag of bones and now I name thee Martha Jones." Martha immediately collapsed, the Doctor lowering her down to the ground carefully, both him and Rose looking concerned.

"What have you done?" Rose bit her lip. "Did you hurt her?"

"Only sleeping, alas," Lilith tilted her head. "Curious. The name has less impact. She's somehow out of her time. And as for you, Sir Doctor!" She pointed, expecting a reaction, but nothing came to her. "Fascinating. There is no name. Why would a man hide his title in such despair? Oh, but look…" She glanced at Rose, and smirked. "There's still one word with the power."

"The naming won't work on me," The Doctor growled, holding Rose's hand tightly.

"But your heart grows cold," Lilith purred. "The north wind blows and carries down the distant… Rose."

Rose blinked a few times, whimpering. "Doctor, I don't feel too good…" She suddenly fell unconscious, and the Doctor held her tightly, lowering her to the ground carefully.

"Oh, big mistake," He frowned. "Because that name keeps me fighting! The Carrionites vanished. Where did you go?"

"The Eternals found the right word to banish us into deep darkness," She replied simply, sauntering around her cauldron.

"And how did you escape?" The Doctor needed to get as much information as possible out of her.

"New words…" Lilith smirked. "New and glittering from a mind like no other."

"Shakespeare," He sighed.

"His son perished! The grief of a genius. Grief without measure. Madness enough to allow us entrance."

"How many of you?"

"Just the three," Lilith grinned evilly. "But the play tonight shall restore the rest. Then the human race will be purged as pestilence. And from this world we will lead the universe back to the old ways of blood and magic."

"Hmm… busy schedule… but first you gotta get past me," He stood face to face with Lilith, a stern look on his face. She smiled seductively at him, moving in close.

"Oh, that should be a pleasure considering my enemy has such a handsome shape…" She ran her fingers along his face delicately. He tried not to grimace at her touch.

"Now, that's one form of magic that's definitely not gonna work on me," He glared at her.

"Oh, we'll see," She smirked as she yanked a lock of hair from his head, backing away quickly behind her cauldron again.

"What… what did you do?" He felt his head carefully, looking at her with wide eyes.

"Souvenir," Lilith replied with a sly smile, holding up the lock of hair.

"Well, give it back!" He frowned as he reached out, but Lilith threw her arms up and opened the window behind her, flying out backwards, levitating to safety. The Doctor chased her to the window and sighed exasperatingly. "Well, that's just cheating!"

"Behold, Doctor!" Lilith pulled out a doll and wrapped the Doctor's hair around it, whilst Martha and Rose began to wake. "Men to Carrionites are nothing but puppets."

"Now, you might call that magic…" He said quickly, trying to buy himself some time. "I'd call that a DNA replication module."

"What use is your science now?" She asked with a smirk, stabbing the doll harshly. The Doctor let out a cry and fell to the floor, Lilith cackling as she flew away. Rose and Martha both rushed over to the Doctor, looking concerned.

"Doctor? Doctor, can you hear me?" Rose rolled him over carefully, breathing a small sigh of relief when he opened his eyes.

"We've got you," Martha pressed her ear to his chest and listened for both heartbeats. She frowned a little. She could only hear one. "Hold on, mister. Two hearts?"

"You're making a habit of this," He wheezed, both girls supporting him as he tried to stand up. "I've only got one heart working. How do you people cope? I've got to get the other one started. Hit me! Hit me on the chest!" Martha hit him and he winced. "Ah! Other side!" Rose hit his other side, both girls looking extremely worried. "On the back! On the back!" Both of them hit his back. "Left a bit!" Martha gave him one last hit and he breathed slowly, relaxing. "Ahh, lovely. There we go! Ba-da-boom! Well, what are you both standing there for? Come on! The Globe!" They all rushed out of the house as quickly as possible.

Meanwhile, Lilith joined Doomfinger and Bloodtide in their private box, a satisfied smirk on her lips. "The Doctor?" Doomfinger asked in a hushed voice.

"Dead," Lilith replied.

"The ladies have prepared a show!" Dick exclaimed as he acted in front of the audience. They were quite far into the play, now. Almost finished, in fact. "Maria means to present Isis descending from the dewy orb of Heaven," He smiled as Kempe entered the stage. "Ah, here comes Costard."

"Masters!" Kempe took an exaggerated bow.

Rose, Martha and the Doctor dashed down the street. Rose paused and frowned, looking around helplessly. "We're going the wrong way!"

"No, we're not!" The Doctor insisted as he carried on running. He reached the end of the street, paused, and ran back. "We're going the wrong way!"

"Behold the swinish sight of a woman's love!" Dick was beginning the final speech. "Pish! It's out of season to be heavy disposed."

"It is now, my mothers!" Lilith whispered excitedly as she watched Dick performing the last scene. "The final words to activate the tetradecagon!"

"Betwixt Dravidian shores and Linear 5-9-3-0-1-6-7.02 and strikes the fulsome grove of Rexel 4. Co-radiating crystal, activate!" Dick exclaimed.

"The portal opens!" Lilith gasped and cackled. "It begins!"

The Doctor, Rose and Martha stopped outside the Globe, looking up with wide eyes when they saw a red glow of pure energy pouring out from the building. People were screaming and running away in fear. "Stage door!" They rushed off towards the Globe, whilst dark looming thunderclouds were forming and mixing with the red glow. Lightning struck around the stage and the audience cried out in fear, trying desperately to leave, but the exit doors swung shut, trapping them all. The trio burst in backstage to see Shakespeare nursing his head. "Stop the play!" The Doctor sighed exasperatingly. "I think that was it. Yeah, I said, stop the play!"

"I hit my head," Shakespeare muttered.

"Yeah, don't rub it, you'll go bald," He rolled his eyes and turned quickly as he heard screaming from out the front. "I think that's my cue!" All four of them ran out onto the stage.

"Now begins the millennium of blood!" Lilith cackled delightfully, but she hissed when she noticed the Doctor along with Rose, Martha and Shakespeare. "The Doctor! He lives! Then watch this world become a blasted heath! They come! They come!"

The remaining Carrionites were freed from the glowing red thunder clouds, flying and swooping around the Globe. The Doctor immediately turned to Shakespeare. "Come on, Will! History needs you!"

"But what can I do?" Shakespeare asked in disbelief.

"Reverse it!" Rose shouted over the cackling of the Carrionites.

"How am I supposed to do that?"

"The shape of the Globe gives words power," The Doctor held Shakespeare by the shoulders. "But you're the wordsmith! The one true genius! The only man clever enough to do it!"

"But what words?" Shakespeare looked back at him with a worried expression. "I have none ready!"

"You're _William Shakespeare_!" Martha exclaimed. "You have plenty of words!"

"But these Carrionite phrases, they need such precision!"

"Trust yourself," The Doctor murmured calmly. "When you're locked away in your room, the words just come, don't they? Like magic. Words of the right sound, the right shape, the right rhythm! Words that last forever! That's what you do, Will! You choose perfect words. Do it. Improvise!"

"Close up this den of hateful, dire decay!" Shakespeare spoke bravely to the Carrionites. "Decomposition of your witches' plot! You thieve my brains, consider me your toy. My doting Doctor tells me I am not!"

"No!" Lilith shrieked in horror. "Words of power!"

"Foul Carrionite spectres, cease your show! Between the points…" He looked to the Doctor for help.

"7-6-1-3-9-0!" He shouted.

"7-6-1-3-9-0!" Shakespeare repeated. "And banished like a tinker's cuss, I say to thee…" He looked again at the Doctor for help, who seemed to be at a loss.

"Expelliarmus!" Rose shouted randomly, hoping it'd help.

Martha let out a laugh, and joined in. "Expelliarmus!"

"Expelliarmus!" The Doctor repeated with a grin.

"Expelliarmus!" Shakespeare laughed madly and punched the air.

"Good old JK!" The Doctor watched with a wide grin as the Carrionites screamed, defeated by Shakespeare's words of power.

"The deep darkness!" Lilith cried. "They are consumed. Ahhh!" The freed Carrionites were sucked back into the cloud like a tornado sweeping away its victims. Every single copy of the play swooped into the cloud like a magnetic force was pulling them.

"Love's Labour's Won," The Doctor commented. "There it goes." The cloud dissipated slowly, the audience sighing in relief and applauding. The Doctor snuck out along with Rose, whilst Shakespeare and Martha stood on stage, taking a bow along with the actors.

"They think it was all special effects!" Martha muttered with a frown.

"Your effect is special indeed," Shakespeare smirked.

"It's not your best line," She rolled her eyes and laughed. Up in the witches' box, the Doctor took the small crystal ball from Lilith's chair carefully. The crystal ball was glowing and it held the three Carrionites, who were trapped inside, screaming and hissing at the Doctor.

"We got them!" Rose grinned as she saw the Carrionites trapped in the crystal ball. "What are you going to do with that crystal ball?"

"I think I'll keep it safe in the TARDIS," The Doctor grinned back at her. "Lock them inside a box for the rest of eternity. They'll have bundles of fun."


	16. The Shakespeare Code, Chapter 4

The sun rose on the next morning. London was back to normal, people were milling about excitedly in town, speaking about the commotion at the Globe yesterday. The whole city was chattering about the most fantastic play written by Shakespeare! The man himself was sitting on the edge of the stage in the Globe Theatre along with Martha. "And I say, a heart for a heart and a deer for a deer."

"I don't get it," Martha shook her head, looking puzzled.

"Then give me a joke from Freedonia."

"Okay. Shakespeare walks into a pub and the landlord says, 'Oi mate, you're bard!'" Martha replied with a smirk.

"It's brilliant!" Shakespeare grinned. "Doesn't make sense, mind you, but never mind that," He wrapped his hand around her waist, pulling her a little closer. "Come here."

"I've only just met you," Martha looked at him with a soft smile.

"The Doctor might never kiss you," Shakespeare pointed out. "Why not entertain a man who will?"

"I don't know how to tell you this, oh great genius…" She smirked at him. "But your breath doesn't half stink."

The Doctor and Rose stepped out from backstage, their arms linked together. Rose was wearing a beautiful sparkly tiara and the Doctor was showing off a ruff collar and an animal skull. "Amazing props store back there!" Rose grinned.

"I'm not sure about this, though…" The Doctor held up the animal skull with a frown. "Reminds me of a Sycorax."

"It does sort of look like a Sycorax, doesn't it?" Rose commented with a smile.

"Sycorax. Nice word," Shakespeare grinned. "I'll have that off you as well."

"I should be on 10 per cent," The Doctor chuckled. "How's your head?"

"Still aching," Shakespeare replied with a sigh.

"Here, I got you this!" The Doctor removed his ruff collar and wrapped it around Shakespeare's neck. "Neck brace. Wear that for a few days till it's better. Although, you might wanna keep it! It suits you."

"What about the play?" Martha asked with a frown.

"Gone," The Doctor confirmed. "I looked all over. Every single copy of 'Love's Labour's Won' went up in the sky."

"My lost masterpiece…" Shakespeare murmured, a little disappointed.

"You could always write it up again," Rose pointed out, noticing Shakespeare's disappointed look.

"Yeah, better not, Will…" The Doctor smiled. "There's still power in those words. Maybe it should best stay forgotten."

"Oh, but I've got new ideas!" Shakespeare exclaimed. "Perhaps it's time I wrote about fathers and sons. In memory of my boy. My precious Hamnet."

"Hamnet?" Martha frowned.

"That's him," Shakespeare nodded.

"Ham-_net_?" Rose asked, looking confused.

"What's wrong with that?" Shakespeare also looked a little puzzled.

"Anyway!" The Doctor smiled, rolling his eyes. "Time we were off. I've got a nice attic in the TARDIS where this lot…" He held up the crystal ball holding the Carrionites. "Can scream for all eternity and I've gotta take Martha back to Freedonia."

"You mean travel on through time and space," Shakespeare commented.

"You what?" Rose frowned. How the hell did he know that?

"You're from another world like the Carrionites, Martha and Rose are from the future," Shakespeare simply smiled at them. "It's not hard to work out."

"That's… incredible!" The Doctor looked impressed. "You are incredible."

"We're alike in many ways, Doctor. What a delight it was to meet you all," Shakespeare turned to Rose, taking her hand and kissing the back of it lightly. "Rose, from now you will always be the inspiration for my sonnets. And may I give you one to reflect upon? …Let me not to the marriage of true minds admit impediments. Love is not love which alters when it alteration finds, or bends with the remover to remove: O no! It is an ever-fixed mark that looks on tempests and is never shaken; it is the star to every wandering bark, whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken. Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks. Within his bending sickle's compass come: Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks, but bears it out even to the edge of doom. If this be error and upon me proved, I never writ, nor no man has ever loved. I think that sonnet perhaps applies to you."

Rose blushed and kissed his cheek lightly. She didn't understand half of the sonnet, so she'd have to ask the Doctor about it later. But she got the general idea, which is why she was blushing. Could he really tell how much she loved the Doctor? "Thank you, Shakespeare…"

"You're welcome, sweet Rose," Shakespeare turned to Martha with a smile. "Martha, let me say goodbye to you in a new verse. A sonnet for my Dark Lady. Shall I compare thee to a summer's day? Thou art more lovely and more temperate…"

"Will! Will!" Kempe interrupted, waving to him. "You'll never believe it! She's here! She's turned up!"

"We're the talk of the town!" Dick ran in, panting softly and looking very excited. "She heard about last night! She wants us to perform it again."

"Who?" Rose asked with a smile.

"Her Majesty!" Dick replied with a grin. "She's _here_!"

"Queen Elizabeth I!" The Doctor looked with excitement as the fanfare played, and Elizabeth entered the Globe Theatre. Her face immediately fell when she noticed the Doctor.

"DOCTOR!" She shrieked.

"What?" Rose and Martha looked at him with raised eyebrows, but he simply shrugged.

"My sworn enemy!"

"_What_?" The Doctor stared nervously, not having a clue what was going on.

"Off with his head!" Elizabeth commanded to her guards.

"_What?_"

"Never mind what, just run!" Rose held his hand tightly. "Bye, Shakespeare!"

"See you, Will!" Martha grinned. "And thanks!" She ran off along with Rose and the Doctor, Shakespeare laughing softly, looking highly amused.

They headed through the crowd and to the TARDIS quickly, soldiers following with bows and arrows. "Stop in the name of the Queen!"

"What did you do?" Martha laughed.

"What have you done to upset her?" Rose asked with a grin whilst the Doctor fumbled in his pockets, trying to find his key.

"How should I know?" He laughed. "Haven't even met her yet. That's time travel for you! Still, can't wait to find out," He found his key, popping it into the lock and opening the TARDIS. Martha and Rose ran in immediately. "That's something to look forward to. Oh!" He ducked inside the TARDIS when the soldiers fired their bows and arrows, embedding an arrow in the door. The Doctor quickly jumped to the console and pulled the dematerialisation lever, sending them off into the Vortex once again.


	17. The Shakespeare Code, Epilogue

The time rotor rose and fell in a smooth rhythm, the console room filled with a soft, warm light. The Doctor was busy showing various rooms of the TARDIS to Martha. She explored the vast library, had a peek at the Doctor's study, and glanced in at several different bedrooms. Rose, meanwhile, was standing at the console in contemplation. She was flicking through a book titled 'Shakespeare's Sonnets', locating the one that Shakespeare had told her about before. The words were printed in a beautiful swirling font...

'Let me not to the marriage of true minds  
>Admit impediments. Love is not love<br>Which alters when it alteration finds,  
>Or bends with the remover to remove:<br>O no! it is an ever-fixed mark  
>That looks on tempests and is never shaken;<br>It is the star to every wandering bark,  
>Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.<br>Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks  
>Within his bending sickle's compass come:<br>Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,  
>But bears it out even to the edge of doom.<br>If this be error and upon me proved,  
>I never writ, nor no man ever loved.'<p>

"Rose?" The Doctor was watching her with a soft smile. She was a little startled by his sudden arrival, jumping a little and giggling softly. "Martha's just having a closer look at the library," He tilted his head in curiosity at the sight of the book in her hands. "What're you reading?"

"Shakespeare's sonnets," Rose replied gently. "Shakespeare... he told me a sonnet before we left, but I didn't quite understand it all... I think I've found it here."

"Let's have a look," The Doctor peeked into the book, reading the sonnet slowly. "Ah, sonnet 116! It's about love. Love in its truest form, about relationships built up on honesty and trust... and how love outlasts us all... for example, 'Love's not Time's fool', that means love is not at the mercy of time. It lasts forever."

A gentle blush crept onto Rose's cheeks. "Why would Shakespeare tell me this? Was he commenting about... us?"

"Quite possibly," The Doctor replied with a smile, placing the book down on the console. "He's a clever man... He could probably read us like a book."

"You're still nervous, aren't you?" Rose murmured, looping her arms around his neck and snuggling close to him.

"Yes," He replied honestly, hugging her close to his chest. "I'm nervous about losing you. I almost did, before."

"Doctor... I'm here for you, right here, right now... I might not be in the future, but that doesn't matter right now... I just want you to be happy..." She smiled up at him, and planted a soft kiss to his lips. "My Doctor."

"My Rose."


	18. Gridlock, Prologue

In the dark, a small screen buzzed into life. A charming blonde woman smiled through the screen. She was standing against a news backdrop, wearing a neat blouse and skirt, waving at whoever happened to be watching her report. "Salutations! This is Sally Calypso with the traffic news at 10:15. We've got reports of a multiple stackpile at Junction 509, with a spate of carjackings reported on New Fifth Avenue. So you take care now! Drive safely."

Inside some sort of vehicle, Ma and Pa, a middle-aged couple, received the transmission of Sally Calypso's daily traffic report. But they weren't listening. They were busy worrying about their lives. "They're gonna get in!" Ma cried frantically as she locked the door. "There's no stopping them."

"The police are on their way, I promise!" Pa was fiddling madly with the controls of his vehicle. It was dark, the windows were blacked out, and there was some sort of horrible rumbling from outside. "I've sounded the alarm." He held up a small remote – his vocal transmitter. "Repeat. This is Car One Zero Hot Five. We have a problem! Require urgent assistance."

"Thank you for your call!" The electronic voice replied over Pa's transmitter. "You have been placed on hold." Typical cheery music started to play as Pa was put on hold.

"It's all your fault!" Ma growled. "You lied to the computer. You said there was three of us! You told them three!" She started to sob, and their car started to rock back and forth violently.

"Repeat!" Pa clutched his transmitter and tried to stay upright as their vehicle was tossed about by some unknown force. "Urgent assistance! Car One Zero Hot Five! This is an emergency! Help us! Oh my God, I'm begging you. Please, help us!"

Ma and Pa both screamed in absolute terror as their car was hurtled violently about, bucking and rolling in harsh movements. Something growled outside… a terrible, evil growl. The warning lights sounded, blaring loudly as the controls sparked. A single hand slid down the screen of Sally Calypso's cheery news report. "The weather is at 36 degrees, and it's blue skies all the way home. This is Sally Calypso, signing off. Missing you already!"


	19. Gridlock, Chapter 1

The Doctor, Rose and Martha were still buzzing from their latest fun adventure with William Shakespeare. Martha sat in the jumpseat, Rose hugging the Doctor whilst he cheerily flipped a few levers on the console. "Just one trip. That's what I said. One trip, in the TARDIS, and then home. Although… I suppose we could stretch the definition. Try one trip to the past, one trip to the future. How do you fancy that?"

"No complaints from me!" Martha grinned, obviously thrilled.

"That's _brilliant_!" Rose beamed, happy to have Martha on board for a little while longer.

"How about a different planet?" The Doctor suggested.

"Can we go to yours?" Martha asked, curious about the planet of the Time Lords. It must be _amazing_.

Rose winced, and the Doctor's cheery mood disappeared almost immediately. "Ah, there's plenty of other places!" He turned away and fiddled with the console idly, his hearts hurting.

"Come on, though!" Martha smiled, oblivious to the Doctor's sadness. "I mean, Planet of the Time Lords, that's got to be worth a look! What's it like?"

"Well it's beautiful, yeah," The Doctor shrugged.

"Is it like, you know… outer space cities, all spires and stuff?"

"Suppose it is."

"Great big temples and cathedrals!" Martha grinned, lost in her imagination, trying to picture such a beautiful planet. The Doctor was clearly upset, Rose watching him sadly and holding his hand, giving it a comforting squeeze. "Are there lots of planets in the sky?"

"The sky's a burnt orange," The Doctor mumbled. "With the Citadel enclosed in a mighty glass dome, shining under the twin suns. Beyond that, the mountains go on forever… slopes of deep red grass, capped with snow."

Martha looked at him with wide eyes, completely amazed and enthralled. "Can we go there?"

"Nah!" The Doctor put on a fake smile. "Where's the fun for me? I don't want to go home! Instead…" He regained his cheery exterior and jumped around the console, flicking settings, leaving Rose with a frown. She couldn't understand why he was hiding the truth from Martha. "This is much better! Year five billion and fifty-three, planet New Earth! Second hope of mankind! Fifty thousand light years from your old world, and we're slap bang in the middle of New New York. Although, technically it's the fifteenth New York from the original, so it's New New New New New New New New New New New New New New New York. One of the most dazzling cities ever built."

"Oh!" Rose grinned at the sound of a familiar planet. "New Earth! I _loved_ it there!" She took her coat and stepped outside eagerly. The Doctor threw on his overcoat, leading Martha out of the TARDIS into a pouring rain shower.

"Oh, that's nice!" Martha scowled, quickly zipping up her jacket. "Time Lord version of dazzling!"

"Nah, bit of rain never hurt anyone!" He held Rose's hand with a grin. "Come on, let's get under cover!"

Meanwhile, in a dark musty room, Novice Hame, one of the Catkind, sat in the centre of the floor, surrounded by thick fraying wires leading from broken screens and consoles. The entire room looked filthy and needed a good clean. In front of Novice Hame sat the Face of Boe, the majestic face still sitting inside his protective tank. "He has arrived…" The Face of Boe whispered through telepathy to Novice Hame.

"What should I do?" Novice Hame asked, looking a little excited and nervous. She must've been waiting in that room for a long time, because the thought of activity outside made her stand up immediately.

"Find him. Before it's too late." Novice Hame bowed in obeisance, pulling out a large gun from one of the walls. She armed it with a click, and a flash of green light, ready to find the Doctor.

It was still raining heavily in the slummy portion of the city where the Doctor, Martha and Rose were walking through. The street was filthy, junk was left everywhere. They passed old giant dumpsters and laundry swinging from a line. "Well, it looks like the same old Earth to me," Martha mumbled, unimpressed so far. "On a Wednesday afternoon."

"Yeah… Doctor, the last time we were here, this city was amazing," Rose frowned. "I saw it. It looked beautiful, nothing like this. What's happened?"

"Hold on, hold on," The Doctor frowned, trying to think. "Let's have a look." He approached a dead screen hanging on the wall, taking out his sonic screwdriver and fixing it. Static appeared, followed by Sally Calypso's report – the exact same report as the one transmitted into Ma and Pa's car, and every other car on the planet.

"- and the driving should be clear and easy, with fifteen extra lanes open for the New New Jersey expressway!" The screen flickered to reveal the New New York above ground. It showed the gorgeous shining spired city on the coast of a sparkling river, sleek flying vehicles zooming past in the air.

"That's more like it!" Rose grinned at the sight of the planet she saw before.

"That's the New Earth we had last time," The Doctor looked around with a frown. "This must be the lower levels. Down in the base of the tower, some sort of under-city."

"You've brought me to the slums?" Martha asked, unsure whether to be irritated or pleased. She was also a little annoyed that he'd took her to the same planet as one he took Rose to, but she was trying not to let this get to her.

"Much more interesting!" The Doctor gestured around with a smile. "It's all cocktails and glitter up there. This is the real city."

"You'd enjoy anything," Rose murmured with a fond smile, giving his hand a squeeze and kissing his cheek.

"That's me!" The Doctor grinned, looking up into the sky. "Oh, the rain's stopping! Better and better!"

Suddenly, a street vendor flipped open the top of a very large green box, revealing his cart and items for sale. Around the Doctor, Rose and Martha, many other men and women were doing the same, appearing and shouting out their wares. "Oh, you should have said!" One pharmacist shouted. "How long you been there? Happy! You want Happy?"

"Customers, customers!" Another pharmacist grinned. "We've got customers!"

"We're in business!" A small pharmacist clapped his hands in delight. "Mother, open up the Mellow, and the Read!"

"Happy, happy, lovely happy Happy!" The first pharmacist held up what looked like a small token.

"Anger!" The second pharmacist shouted happily. "Buy some Anger!"

"Get some Mellow, makes you feel all bendy and soft all day long!" The third pharmacist murmured dreamily, clapping her hands and grinning.

"Younger, them," The first pharmacist glared at his competitors, and smiled at the Doctor. "Do you want some Happy?"

"No, thanks," The Doctor replied with a frown.

"Are they selling _drugs_?" Rose whispered, a little disturbed.

"I think they're selling moods."

"Same thing, isn't it?" Martha asked with a frown when more people walked into the alleyway behind them. They all looked poor and filthy, and their arrival drew more cries from the pharmacists. A pale, sickly woman dressed in dark tattered clothes stepped forward towards the stalls.

"Over here, sweetheart!" The third pharmacist shouted. "That's it, come on, I'll get you first!"

"Oi! Oi, you! Over here!" The first pharmacist waved madly at the woman. "Over here! Buy some Happy!"

"Come over here, yeah," The third pharmacist smirked as she drew the woman's attention. "And what can I get you, my love?"

"I want to buy Forget," The woman murmured sadly, her hands shaking nervously.

"I've got Forget, my darling," The pharmacist purred. "What strength? How much you want forgetting?"

"It's my mother and father…" The woman whimpered sadly. "They went on the motorway."

"Oh, that's so sweet," She reached behind her into the stall, pulling out a small circular token, handing it over to the pale woman. "Try this. Forget forty-three. That's twopence." The woman paid the pharmacist and took the token, turning slowly. Before she could do anything with it, the Doctor interrupted.

"Sorry, but hold on a minute," He examined the woman and the token with a frown. "What happened to your parents?"

"They drove off," She replied simply.

"They might drive back," Rose pointed out, looking a little confused.

"Everyone goes to the motorway in the end," The woman murmured sadly, almost in tears. "I've lost them."

"But they can't have gone far. You could find them," Martha suggested, frowning a little.

The pale woman just looked at the three of them, sighing softly and sticking the token on her neck. "No, no, no, don't!" The Doctor shouted, but he was too late. The token was applied, and the woman's expression changed almost immediately. She seemed happy and serene, completely docile and slightly dizzy, unaware of her surroundings.

"I'm sorry, what were you saying?" The woman murmured with a dreamy smile.

"Your parents! Your mother and father. They're on the motorway," The Doctor informed her, frowning deeply.

"Are they? That's nice…" Martha and Rose both wore the same expression of complete disbelief, looking at the Doctor for an answer. He looked a little disturbed, but this scene seemed unsurprising to him. "I'm sorry, I won't keep you." She left the scene, the others watching with frowns on their faces.

"So, that's the human race five billion years in the future?" Martha felt disappointed, and she sighed softly. "Off their heads on chemicals."

Suddenly, two figures sprung out from behind Rose. They both wore dark clothing and carried guns. Milo, a thin man with dark hair, grabbed Rose from behind, throwing his arm around her neck and dragging her off, as his wife Cheen stood in front of them, pointing her gun at the Doctor and Martha. Rose screamed and struggled madly, but they were too quick. "I'm sorry, I'm really, really sorry. We just need three, that's all." Milo quickly uttered.

"No, let her go!" The Doctor shouted desperately, trying to get past Cheen. "I'm warning you, let her go! Whatever you want, I can help. All three of us, we can help! But first you've got to let her go!"

"DOCTOR!" Rose screamed, struggling madly in Milo's grip. "Doctor, _help_!"

"I'm sorry," Cheen whimpered, uneasy with taking someone. "I'm really sorry. Sorry." She was almost crying. The couple disappeared with Rose in their clutches, slamming a large green door behind them. The Doctor bared his teeth in frustration and began to wrestle with the door.

"Rose! ROSE!" He shouted in desperation.

"What have they done with her?" Martha asked in disbelief, worried about her friend.

"I don't know. I don't know!" The Doctor kicked the door and growled, whilst Milo and Cheen pushed Rose down a shadowy corridor. The Doctor used the sonic screwdriver and yanked the door open quickly, running after the kidnappers. Milo, Cheen and Rose emerged in daylight, running down what seemed to be a fire escape. Milo was holding Rose tightly by the arm, Cheen at the rear, still holding the gun.

"Look, whatever you want, the Doctor can help!" Rose cried. "We can all help you! Just let me go!" She broke free of Milo's grip but he was swift to grab her again, pulling her closer and arriving in front of a large black car.

"Give her some Sleep," Milo uttered.

"No! No, don't you dare!" Rose shouted, looking terrified. "Don't you dare put that stuff on my neck! Let me go!"

"It's just Sleep Fourteen," Cheen reached into the vehicle and pulled out another token, pressing it into Rose's neck. She cried out and screamed, Cheen looking upset. "No, baby, don't fight it."

"No! _Please_, no!" Rose couldn't resist the drug for much longer, and she soon succumbed and fell straight to sleep.

"That's it," Cheen breathed a sigh of relief. "Come on. That's it."

"Get on board," Milo began to load Rose into their car, the Doctor dashing madly through the corridor, Martha struggling to keep up. Milo flicked the switch inside his vehicle with a sigh. "Engaging anti-gravs. Hold on." Cheen laid Rose down on a long table, reaching to the top of the ceiling for support as the car slowly rose into the air, the engine powering up. The Doctor rushed out just in time to see the car speeding off.

"Rose! ROSE!" He yelled frantically, watching helplessly as the car shot down a small alleyway and disappeared from sight. "No!" He kicked a nearby lamppost in frustration.

"Calm down!" Martha tried to be helpful, but her efforts were blown in her face when she saw the look of pure anger in the Doctor's eyes.

Meanwhile, Cheen felt Rose's cheek gently as she slept. Everything inside their car was suffused with a mechanical green light. "She's all right," Cheen sighed. "She's breathing. Pulse is fine. No harm done. She looks rich! She must have got lost…" She seemed a little more cheerful, taking off her jacket and settling in beside Milo at the front.

"Yeah, well, she's worth her weight in gold to us," Milo smirked, pulling out his own vocal transmitter and speaking into it. "This is car Four Six Five Diamond Six. We have three passengers, repeat three. Request access to the fast lane."

"Access granted," The electronic voice answered over the transmitter.

"Oh, yes!" Milo grinned and gave Cheen a kiss, both of them absolutely delighted. Being granted access to the fast lane was like winning the lottery to them.

The Doctor and Martha stepped back into the alleyway where they met the pharmacists. The Doctor was absolutely fuming and Martha was staying back, not wanting to tick him off any further. He approached one of the stalls and pounded on the door.

"Thought you'd come back!" The third pharmacist smiled as she opened up her stall. "Do you want some happy Happy?"

"Those people, who were they?" The Doctor growled, absolutely mad as hell. "Where did they take her?"

"They've taken her to the motorway," The first pharmacist opened up his stall, looking at the Doctor grimly.

"Looked like carjackers to me," The third pharmacist observed.

"I'd give up now, darling," The second pharmacist opened his stall, also looking grim. "You won't see her again."

"Used to be thriving in this place!" The first pharmacist sighed. "You couldn't move. But they all go to the motorway in the end."

"He kept on saying three, we need three. What did he mean, three?" The Doctor growled, asking them all at once, needing answers as soon as possible.

"It's the car-sharing policy," The third pharmacist explained. "To save fuel. You get special access if you're carrying three adults."

"This motorway, how do I get there?" The Doctor ran his fingers through his hair in frustration, trying very hard not to explode.

"Straight down the alley, keep going to the end," The third pharmacist pointed in the correct direction. "You can't miss it," The Doctor strode off immediately, not wanting to waste any more time. "Tell you what, how about some happy Happy? Them you'll be smiling, love!"

The Doctor paused and turned back, growling. "Word of advice, all of you. Cash up. Close down. And pack your bags."

"Why's that, then?" The third pharmacist asked with a frown.

"Because as soon as I've found her, alive and well – and I _will_ find her, alive and well – then I'm coming back. And this street is closing. _Tonight_!" He strode off again with Martha in tow, leaving the pharmacists looking apprehensive.


	20. Gridlock, Chapter 2

A surveillance screen showed a small blip indicating the car Four-Six-Five-Diamond-Six, which was carrying Rose along with her captors. The blip moved from Level 17 at the top of the screen down to Level 21, descending through the rows of cars. Rose started to regain consciousness, rubbing her head and looking around slowly. She noticed some pills… odd containers full of unknown liquid next to her… and she heard voices in the background. Milo and Cheen were sat in the driver and passenger seats.

"Yeah. The view from the windows. You can see all the way out to the flatlands…" Cheen murmured dreamily.

Rose reached drowsily for the token on her neck, pulling it off with a frown and throwing it away, rubbing at her neck with a small whimper. She didn't like the idea of those chemicals in her body.

"The sky…" Cheen grinned at Milo. "They say the air smells like apple grass. Can you imagine?"

"The houses are made of wood," Milo described with enthusiasm. "There are jobs going in the foundries. Everyone says so!"

Rose noticed a gun sitting on a computer screen next to her. She didn't like to use weapons, but… she had no choice in this situation. Her first priority was to find the Doctor. So, she snatched the weapon, quickly standing up and pointing it at her captors. "Take me back. Take me back to the Doctor, please. I don't want to use this gun. He can help you, the Doctor can help you! Just take me back, please!"

Milo and Cheen shared a glance, Cheen looking up at Rose with a smile. "I'm sorry. That's not a real gun."

"Yeah… but, you would say that!" Rose answered back with a frown, not wanting to be tricked.

"Where do you get a gun from, these days?" Cheen sighed. "I wouldn't even know how to fire."

Rose paused, looking down at the gun, a little disgusted with herself. She wouldn't _ever_ fire at them if the gun was real, she didn't have the guts to. She lowered the gun quickly and shook her head. "No, me neither…"

"What's your name?" Cheen asked, trying to be friendly.

"Rose," She replied, approaching them hesitantly. "Rose Tyler."

"Well, I'm Cheen, and this is Milo," Cheen smiled. "And I swear we're sorry. We're really, really sorry. We just needed access to the fast lane, but I promise as soon as we arrive, we'll drop you off and you can go back and find your friend."

Rose blinked a few times, surprised at being offered such kindness from kidnappers. "Seriously?"

"I swear! Look…" Cheen pulled back her hair to reveal a token on her neck. It looked exactly the same as the one Rose wore earlier, except the word 'HONESTY' was printed onto the token, with the number '36' underneath. "Honesty patch."

"All the same, you did _kidnap_ me!" Rose frowned, wondering if they'd get arrested by the police for this. "Where are we, anyway?"

"We're on the motorway," Milo answered.

"What's that, then?" Rose peered out of the window. All she could see was thick grey smoke. "Fog?"

"That's the exhaust fumes," Cheen replied.

"We're going out to Brooklyn," Milo smiled widely. "Everyone says the air's so much cleaner, and we couldn't stay in Pharmacy Town, 'cause…" He affectionately rubbed Cheen's knee, and she looked up at Rose.

"Well, 'cause of me…" Cheen explained with a glowing grin. "I'm pregnant. We only discovered it last week. Scan says it's going to be a boy."

"Great!" Rose replied a little sarcastically. "Am I supposed to congratulate my kidnappers?"

"Oh, we're not kidnappers," Cheen rolled her eyes. "Not really."

"No, you're both idiots!" Rose growled, ripping the honesty patch from Cheen's neck, and she let out a small yelp of pain. "Having this thing on your neck whilst you're _pregnant_!"

"Calm down!" Milo frowned. "This'll be as fast as we can. We'll take the motorway to the Brooklyn flyover, and then after that it's gonna take a while, 'cause there's no fast lane, just ordinary roads. But at least it's direct."

"It's only ten miles," Cheen rubbed at her neck with a small frown.

"How long is that going to take?" Rose asked with a sigh. "Because I _really_ need to find my friends."

"About six years," Cheen replied as if this distance was completely normal.

"_What_?" Rose whimpered. "Six _years_?" She couldn't wait six years!

"Be just in time for him to start school…" Cheen and Milo shared a giggle, both of them looking like very proud parents already.

"Hold on, I don't understand…" Rose interrupted their moment, stepping in the way of both of them. "Six years? Ten miles in six years? How come?"

Meanwhile, Martha watched carefully as the Doctor forced open a large door labelled 'MOTORWAY ACCESS', using the sonic screwdriver to prise open the lock. Both of them stepped forward and began to cough, now in an atmosphere of heavy unhealthy smoke. They both soon realised that the smoke was from the exhausts of hundreds, thousands, _millions_ of cars, all hovering in the air in the longest, most terrible traffic jam in the entire universe. Suddenly, a car sped into view right in front of Martha and the Doctor, a large figure covered in protective gear opening the door and reaching out.

"Hey! You daft little street strutters! What are you both doing, standing there? Either get out or get in! Come on!" The Doctor pushed Martha through into the car first, following and coughing madly. "Did you ever see the like?"

Valerie, a pale dark-haired woman, handed both the Doctor and Martha an oxygen mask with a smile. "Here you go."

"Just standing there, breathing it in!" The figure took off his goggles, cap and scarf, to reveal his face. Brannigan was a cat, just like Novice Hame. "There's this story says back in the old days, on Junction Forty-Seven, this woman stood in the exhaust fumes for a solid twenty minutes. By the time they found her, her head had swollen to fifty feet!"

"Oh, you're making it up," Valerie rolled her eyes with a fond smile.

"A fifty-foot head! Just think of it," Brannigan dived into his driver's seat again with a chuckle. "Imagine picking that nose."

"Stop it!" Valerie wrinkled her nose in disgust. "That's disgusting."

"What?" Brannigan laughed. "Did you never pick your nose?" Valerie suddenly sat up bolt straight, tapping Brannigan urgently.

"Bran, we're moving!" She gasped.

"Right. I'm there, I'm on it!" He pulled a lever on the console, the engine in the back of the car spewing out disgusting black smoke. They moved forward, along with every other car in their section, horns beeping in every corner. They didn't move far at all, and after a couple of seconds, Brannigan drew the lever back and sighed. "Twenty yards! We're having a good day," He and Valerie both turned back to study their guests. "And who may you both be? Very well-dressed for a pair of hitchhikers!"

"Thanks," The Doctor breathed as he took the oxygen mask off. "Sorry, I'm the Doctor. This is Martha Jones."

Martha took off her oxygen mask with a gasp, waving weakly. "Hey."

"Medical man, and a beautiful woman! Ha-ha! My name's Thomas Kincade Brannigan, and this is the bane of my life, the lovely Valerie."

"Nice to meet you," Valerie waved shyly.

"And that's the rest of the family behind you." Brannigan gestured to a curtain behind the Doctor and Martha. The Doctor turned, drawing the curtain back carefully to reveal a basket of the most adorable mewling kittens.

"Awww!" Martha squealed in delight and reached down to carefully pet one of the kittens. "They're adorable!"

"Aww, that's nice! Hello!" The Doctor reached down gently, picking up a tiny black cat and stroking it carefully. Martha watched him with a soft giggle, thinking _he_ looked adorable, never mind the cat. "How old are they?"

"Just two months," Valerie answered proudly.

"Poor little souls," Brannigan sighed. "They've never known the ground beneath their paws. Children of the motorway."

"What, they were born in here?" The Doctor asked, looking puzzled.

"We couldn't stop," Valerie explained. "We heard there were jobs going, out in the laundries on Fire Island. Thought we'd take a chance."

"Hold on, you've been driving for two _months_?" Martha asked with a frown.

"Do I look like a teenager?" Brannigan asked with a chuckle. "We've been driving for twelve years now!"

"I'm sorry?" The Doctor and Martha both looked a little horrified.

"Yeah!" Brannigan nodded. "Started out as newlyweds! Feels like yesterday."

"Feels like twelve years to me," Valerie muttered.

"Ah, sweetheart, but you're still lovely," Brannigan gave her a little tickle, their troubles momentarily forgotten.

"Twelve _years_?" The Doctor was trying to get his head around all of this madness. "How far did you come? Where did you start?"

"Battery Park," Brannigan answered. "It's five miles back."

"You travelled five miles in twelve years?" Martha asked, looking incredulous.

"I think they're a bit slow!" Brannigan rolled his eyes, and the Doctor carefully put the kitten back into the basket.

"Where are you both from?" Valerie asked.

"Never mind that, we've got to get out. Our friend's in one of these cars. She was taken hostage. We should get back to the TARDIS…" He glanced at Martha and pulled open the door next to him, but there was nothing but smoke outside.

"You're too late for that!" Brannigan shook his head. "We've passed the lay-by. You're passengers now!"

"When's the next lay-by?" The Doctor asked urgently, coughing and closing the door quickly.

Brannigan considered for a moment. "Oh… six months?" Martha's eyes widened and the Doctor sighed exasperatingly. This was clearly not a good day for them. They were both stuck in the worst traffic jam in the universe. Very few cars were actually moving. Somewhere else inside the lanes of traffic, Rose watched from the window with a sigh.

"How many cars are out there?" She asked, shuffling her feet a little nervously. She missed the Doctor and Martha. She closed her eyes and tried to imagine the feeling of the Doctor's warm chest, his protective arms around her whenever they hugged… his soft lips... it was comforting to her, but whenever she opened her eyes, the image of him disappeared, replaced by cold, hard reality.

"I don't think anyone knows…" Cheen observed Rose for a moment, turning to grab a wafer and handing it to her. "Here you go. Hungry?"

"Oh, thanks…" Rose mumbled as she took the wafer gratefully, nibbling the edge. "How far down is it to this fast lane?"

"Oh, it's right at the bottom," Milo replied. "Underneath the traffic jam. But not many people can afford three passengers, so it's empty down there. Rumour has it you can reach up to thirty miles per hour!"

"Right…" Rose sighed and looked around curiously. "How are you both supposed to live inside this thing? There's barely enough space."

"Oh, we stocked up," Cheen explained. "Got self-replicating fuel, muscle stimulants for exercise, and there's a chemical toilet in the back. And all waste products are recycled as food."

Rose immediately stopped eating, eyeing her wafer with disgust. "Okay…" She dropped the wafer as fast as she could, desperately wanting to get the taste out of her mouth.

"Oh, another gap, this is brilliant!" Milo grinned, pulling up his transmitter and leaning eagerly over the controls.

"Car sign in," The electronic voice buzzed through the transmitter.

"Car Four Six Five Diamond Six, on descent to fast lane, thank you very much!" Milo clapped his hands in delight.

"Please drive safely."

Meanwhile, the Doctor whirred the sonic screwdriver in front of a screen, bringing up the insignia of the New New York Police Department. "I need to talk to the police," The Doctor spoke through the transmitter, Martha listening in with a frown.

"Thank you for your call," The electronic voice replied. "You have been placed on hold."

"But you're the _police_!" The Doctor uttered with a frown.

"Thank you for your call," The electronic voice repeated. "You have been placed on hold."

The Doctor quickly scrambled up to the front of the car, speaking urgently to Brannigan and Valerie. "Is there anyone else? I once met the Duke of Manhattan, is there any way of getting through to him?"

"Oh, now, ain't you lordly?" Brannigan rolled his eyes.

"We've got to find our friend!" Martha frowned. "Please, help us!"

"You can't make outside calls," Valerie explained. "The motorway's completely enclosed."

"What about the other cars?" The Doctor asked quickly.

"Oh, we've got contact with them, yeah. Well, some of them, anyway. They've got to be on your friends list. Now, let's see… who's nearby? Ah! The Cassini sisters!" Brannigan held up his transmitter with a smile. "Still your hearts, my handsome girls. It's Brannigan here!"

In another car, two white-haired women were sitting at the front, surrounded by needlework, comfy chairs and sewing tools. Alice was in the driver's seat, holding up the transmitter and smiling at May, who was knitting beside her. "Get off the line, Brannigan. You're a pest and a menace."

"Oh, come on now, sisters," Brannigan chuckled. "Is that any way to talk to an old friend?"

"You know full well we're not sisters!" Alice laughed. "We're married."

"Oooh, stop that modern talk! I'm an old-fashioned cat. Now, I've got a couple of hitchhikers here, the Doctor and Martha Jones." Brannigan held up the transmitter and the Doctor grabbed it quickly.

"Hello, sorry! I'm looking for someone called Rose Tyler. She's been carjacked," The Doctor explained. "She's inside one of these vehicles, but I don't know which one."

"Wait a minute," May grabbed a large notebook and opened it up. It looked quite like a register. "Could I ask, what entrance did they use?"

"Where were we?" The Doctor asked.

"Pharmacy Town," Brannigan replied.

"Pharmacy Town," The Doctor repeated quickly. "About twenty minutes ago."

"Let's have a look…" May started to flick the pages in her notebook.

"Just my luck, to marry a car-spotter," Alice rolled her eyes fondly.

"In the last half hour, fifty-three new cars joined from the Pharmacy Town junction!" May smiled.

"We'll need something more specific than that!" Martha muttered with a slight frown.

"All in good time. Was she car-jacked by two people?" May asked politely.

"Yes, she was, yeah!" The Doctor nodded quickly, biting his lip.

"There we are! Just one of those cars was destined for the fast lane. That means they had three on board. And car number is Four Six Five Diamond Six."

"That's it!" The Doctor couldn't help but grin when he found hope. "So, how do we find them?"

"Ah…" May sighed. "Now, there I'm afraid I can't help."

"Call them on this thing!" The Doctor turned to Brannigan quickly, his hearts pounding. "We've got their number."

"Not if they're designated fast lane," Brannigan replied, feeling a little sorry for him. "It's a different class."

"You could try the police?" May suggested.

"They put me on hold," The Doctor mumbled.

"You'll have to keep trying," Alice advised with a sigh. "There's no one else."

"Thank you." The Doctor handed back the transmitter and ran his fingers through his hair. He peered out of the window, seeing thousands of cars through the thick black smoke. Rose was out there somewhere. His sweet Rose… He felt a pang in his hearts and looked down sadly, Martha placing a comforting hand on his arm.

"We'll find her, okay?" Martha murmured softly. "We'll find her."

Meanwhile, the vehicle Four Six Five Diamond Six was descending through the never-ending line of cars. The blip on the surveillance screen indicated the car moving from Level 39 down to Level 43, Milo pointing at the screen with enthusiasm. "See? Another ten layers to go. We're scorching."

Rose attempted to smile, but her efforts faded away immediately when she heard a low noise coming from below. It sounded like a mix between a creak and a growl. It was like nothing she'd ever heard before. "What was that?" She heard the sound again, feeling just a little scared. "It's coming from underneath."

"It does have noise, doesn't it?" Cheen asked. "It's like what Kate said. The stories are true."

"What stories?" Rose asked with a frown.

"It's the sound of the air vents," Milo explained, a little exasperated. "That's all. The exhaust fumes travel down, so at the base of the tunnel they've got air vents."

"No, the stories are much better," Cheen smiled. Milo gave a little chuckle and looked away. "They say people go missing on the motorway. Some cars just vanish, never to be seen again. 'Cause there's something living down there, in the smoke. Something huge. And hungry. And if you get lost on the road… it's waiting for you."

Rose felt even more frightened after hearing the story. The rumbling noise was getting louder and louder, each of them staring at each other nervously. "But like I said," Milo shifted nervously in his seat. "Air vents," He quickly pressed a button on the console. "Going down to the next layer."

"But wait…" Rose frowned, as something clicked in her head. "Look out there. It's filthy with smoke. Does it look like the air vents are _working_?"

"No…" Cheen shook her head slightly and frowned. The sound below them was getting louder. They could hear a terrible growl, and the sound of crashing.

"So what's that, then?" Rose whispered urgently. Nobody had an answer for her, and Milo shrugged.

"Nah. Kid stuff," He held up his transmitter. "Car Four Six Five Diamond Six, on descent."

Meanwhile, the Doctor was wracking his brain for ideas on how to save Rose. "We've got to go to the fast lane. Take us down."

"Not in a million years!" Brannigan replied with a loud, stern voice.

"You've got three passengers! In fact, you've got _four_ passengers! More than enough!" The Doctor gestured to everyone in the vehicle.

"I'm still not going!" Brannigan shook his head stubbornly.

"She's alone, and she's lost," The Doctor murmured in a low, slightly angry voice. "She doesn't belong on this planet, and it's all my fault. I'm asking you, Brannigan… take us down."

"That's a no, and that's final," Valerie sighed exasperatingly. "I'm not risking the children down there!"

"Why not? What's the risk? What happens down there?" The Doctor asked.

"We're not discussing it!" Valerie whimpered. "The conversation is closed!"

"So… we keep on driving?" Martha frowned. "For how long?"

"Yes, we do…" Brannigan sighed. "Until the journey's end."

The Doctor quickly snatched the vocal transmitter, a thought popping into his head. "Mrs Cassini, this is the Doctor. Tell me, how long have you been driving on the motorway?"

"Oh, we were amongst the first!" Alice replied with a sigh. "It's been twenty-three years now."

"And in all that time, have you ever seen a police car?" Valerie and Brannigan glanced at the Doctor anxiously. Neither of them had seen a police car, and by the uncomfortable looks on Alice and May's faces, they hadn't either.

"I'm not sure," May uttered nervously.

"Look at your notes!" The Doctor frowned. "Any police?"

"Not as such…" May looked a little upset.

"Or an ambulance? Rescue service? Anything official? Ever?"

"I can't keep a note of everything!" May shut her notebook quickly, feeling frustrated.

"What if there's no one out there?" The Doctor pointed out. Brannigan quickly reached up and snatched the transmitter away; he was fed up.

"Stop it!" He muttered angrily. "The Cassinis were doing you a favour."

"Someone's got to ask!" The Doctor frowned. "Cause you might not talk about it, but it's there. In your eyes. What if the traffic jam never stops?"

"There's a whole city above us!" Brannigan sighed. "The mighty city-state of New New York. They wouldn't just leave us."

"In that case, where are they?" The Doctor pointed out. "Hmm? What if there's no help coming, not ever? What if there's nothing? Just the motorway, with the cars going round and round and round, never stopping? Forever?"

"Shut up!" Valerie screamed. "Just shut up!"

"Doctor…" Martha gave him a look which purely said, 'You've gone too far'. The screen in front of the car suddenly blared into life. It was the news starting up, being transmitted into every car on the motorway.

"This is Sally Calypso, and it's that time again!" Sally Calypso's beaming attractive face appeared on the screen, smiling away pleasantly. "The sun is blazing high in the sky over the New Atlantic, the perfect setting for the daily contemplation."

"You think you know us so well, Doctor…" Brannigan looked out of the window tearfully. "But we're not abandoned. Not while we have each other."

"This is for all of you out there in the roads…" Sally Calypso looked out from the screen with a sympathetic face. "We're so sorry. Drive safe."

Brannigan and Valerie held hands, as they began to sing. In Rose's car, Milo and Cheen also started to sing. In every single car across the entire motorway, in the worst traffic jam known to history, everyone stopped to sing. 'On a hill, far away, stood an old rugged cross. The emblem of suffering and shame, and I love that old cross where the dearest and best, for a world of lost sinners was slain. So I'll cherish the old, rugged cross, rugged cross, till my trophies at last I lay down, I lay down. I will cling to the old, rugged cross, rugged cross, and exchange it some day for a crown.' By the end of the hymn, Rose wiped a tear from her cheek.


	21. Gridlock, Chapter 3

After the beautiful soft hymn ended across the entire motorway, the little electronic voice interrupted in Milo's car. "Fast lane access. Please drive safely."

"We made it!" Milo looked as if Christmas had come early. "The fast lane!" He grinned as their car swerved out of the long lines of traffic, Cheen looking amazed as they descended into the empty smoke. Although Rose was smiling, she was hiding her anxiety. That smoke didn't look too friendly and neither did the sounds coming from below.

Meanwhile, the Doctor scrambled to the middle of Brannigan's car, pulling out the sonic screwdriver and inspecting the floor. "If you won't take me, I'll go down on my own!"

"Doctor, what are you doing?" Martha asked, looking a bit worried.

"Finding my own way. I usually do. Aha!" He pulled open the hatch in the floor of the car, looking down at hundreds of cars below them, floating in the filthy smog. One car pulled up straight underneath the hatch, and the Doctor prepared himself to jump.

"Oh no you don't," Martha murmured, sitting down at the edge of the hatch and preparing herself to jump. "I'm coming with you!"

"Martha, you'll choke out there," The Doctor stated simply, shaking his head, but the look of pure determination on Martha's face made him sigh. "Right. Take this," He took his tie off and passed it over to her. "Breathe through it. It'll have to do until I can find a mask for both of us," Martha nodded, letting the tie sit in her mouth whilst she tied it around the back of her head. "Here we go!" The Doctor took off his overcoat and chucked it to Valerie. "Look after this…" He looked at his coat with a sad pout. "I love that coat! Janis Joplin gave me that coat."

"But you can't jump!" Valerie cried, looking horrified.

"This Rose…" Brannigan smiled. "She must mean an awful lot to you."

"Well," The Doctor sighed as he thought of Rose. "She's everything to me, and she doesn't deserve to be stranded out there, so you could say that, yeah. Bye, then!" He took Martha's hand and jumped, both of them landing on top of the next car.

"They're completely insane!" Valerie looked down at Martha and the Doctor with a terrified expression.

"That, and a bit magnificent!" Brannigan chuckled.

The Doctor pressed the sonic screwdriver over the top of the car roof, opening the top hatch. He and Martha both drop into the car, looking at a very startled, pale white man.

"Who the hell are you?" The man shrieked in surprise.

"Sorry!" The Doctor grinned. "Motorway Foot Patrol. We're doing a survey. How are you enjoying your motorway?" Before the man could question either of them, the Doctor has already opened the bottom hatch.

"Well, not very much…" The man scratched at the side of his head. "Junction Five's been closed for years!"

"Thank you. Your comments have been noted. Have a nice day!" The Doctor took Martha's hand and leapt through the bottom of the car, landing on the next one down. He coughed just a little, the fumes were so intense. Martha seemed to be coping okay as she breathed through the Doctor's tie. The Doctor swiftly opened the next roof hatch and they both hopped into the car, startling two Asian girls. "Thank you for your cooperation! Your comments have been noted," He noticed two handkerchiefs, tying one over his mouth and handing the other to Martha as a replacement for his tie. "Do you mind if we borrow this? Not my colour, but thank you very much."

"Much better," Martha sighed in relief as she tied the handkerchief over her mouth. On the move once again. This time, they hopped down to two naked drivers, startling them completely.

"Oh!" The Doctor blushed a little and Martha looked away with a smirk. "Don't mind me!" Into the next car below. It was lit a deep red, with a very large man sitting in the front. Martha and the Doctor hopped in, giving the shocked man a salute, and passed down the hatch.

Meanwhile, in Rose's car, all three of them were looking dejectedly at the monitor. It read 'BROOKLYN JUNCTION', with 'EXIT 1,' 'EXIT 2,' and 'EXIT 3' appearing below. "Try again," Cheen sighed. Milo tapped 'EXIT 1', but a large red message beeped at the bottom of the screen, telling them that the junction was closed. "Try the next one…" Milo tapped the next exit, but the screen gave them the same message that the junction was closed. "Oh, what do we do?" She sighed, a little hopelessly.

"We'll keep going round," Milo gave Cheen's hand a squeeze. "We'll do the whole loop. By the time we come back round, they'll be open."

Cheen was about to reply, but all three of them froze when they heard the rumbling noise again. It was louder. Closer. Angrier. "You're still calling that air vents?" Rose asked with her eyebrows raised.

"What else could it be?" Milo replied sharply, with no reply from Rose or Cheen. None of them _wanted_ to know what that sound was. And they heard it again.

"What the hell is that?" Cheen whimpered.

"It's just… the hydraulics!" Milo answered, a little unconvincingly.

"Sounds like it's… _alive_." Rose looked out of the window, peering into the fog, trying to see something. Anything. But all she could see was filthy fog.

"It's all exhaust fumes out there," Milo frowned. "Nothing could breathe in that."

"Calling Car Four Six Five Diamond Six! Repeat, calling Car Four Six Five Diamond Six!" The monitor blared, making the three of them jump. Milo scrambled for his transmitter and spoke into it quickly.

"This is Car Four Six Five Diamond Six. Who's that? Where are you?" Milo asked with a tone of urgency in his voice.

The person calling was Javit, a black cat dressed in leather, accompanied with two frightened-looking blonde girls in her car. Their car was jerking around madly, out of control. "I'm in the fast lane, about fifty yards behind!" Javit stated quickly. "Can you get back up? Can you get off the fast lane?"

"We only have permission to go down," Milo replied. "We… we need the Brooklyn Flyover."

"It's closed," Javit replied simply, and urgently. "Go back up."

"We can't," Milo looked a bit exhausted. "We'll just go round."

"Don't you understand?" Javit asked a little harshly. "They're closed. They're _always_ closed."

Cheen came to realisation and clapped her hands over her mouth, looking in more distress than ever.

"We're stuck down here! And there's something else. Out there, in the fog," Javit looked out of her window fearfully as the car shook. "Can't you hear it?"

"That's the air vents…" Milo murmured a little unconfidently, especially when he started to hear a definite shrill _roar_.

"Jehovah!" Javit shook her head angrily. "What are you, some stupid kid? Get out of here!" Her car shook and jerked around painfully, the girls screaming as they fell to the ground, Javit bracing herself as they all bumped around. Something outside was crushing their car.

"What was that?" Milo asked, listening closely to the commotion on the other end. They could hear the screaming too.

"I can't move!" Javit yelped. "They've got us!"

"But what's happening?"

Rose grew a little impatient with Milo, snatching the transmitter. "Hello? What's got you? What is it?" She heard Javit yell something but she couldn't quite make out what she said. Their car was being crushed. Javit and the girls were being crushed. "Hello?"

"Just drive, you idiots!" Javit screamed, her voice filled with such terror. "Get out of here! Get out!"

"You heard her!" Rose frowned at Milo, who was looking a bit useless. "Do what she said – get us out of here!"

"But where?" Milo asked impatiently.

"Anywhere! Straight ahead! Just drive! And fast!" Rose replied with the exact same amount of impatience, fearing for their lives. Milo grumbled as he started to drive, Cheen bursting out into tears.

"What is it? What's out there? What is it?" Cheen cried.

Meanwhile, in a distant car, a businessman wearing pinstripes leant against his steering wheel, staring out at the endless rows of cars, the never-ending gridlock. Suddenly, Martha and the Doctor jumped through the top hatch of his car, and he looked around in confusion. "'Scuse me, is that legal?"

"Sorry, Motorway Foot Patrol!" The Doctor uttered quickly, but he and Martha were both coughing very hard.

"Whatever," Martha coughed. "Have you got any water?"

"Certainly," The businessman smiled. "Never let it be said I've lost my manners." He reached over to a water cooler, filling two plastic cups with water and handing them to the Doctor and Martha. They both gulped their cup of water gratefully.

"Is this the last layer?" The Doctor asked, feeling refreshed after the cup of water.

"Ah, we're right at the bottom," The businessman confirmed. "Nothing below us but the fast lane."

"Can we drive down?" Martha queried. "We have three people. We can drive down!"

"I suppose," The businessman's smile faded. "We do have three people. But I'm not keen on going down there! Haven't you heard the stories? The things that live down there?"

A thought suddenly popped into the Doctor's head. "If you'll excuse me," He quickly turned to the hatch at the bottom of the car, using the sonic screwdriver to flip it open.

"You can't jump!" The businessman watched with wide eyes. "It's a thousand feet down!"

"No, I just want to look…" He stared out into a thick, murky, disgusting fog, dotted with odd tiny lights. Martha peered down too, and frowned when she heard a strange noise; a mix between a roar and screech.

"What's that noise?" Martha asked, looking at the Doctor with wide eyes.

"I try not to think about it," The businessman added, feeling nervous.

"What are those lights?" The Doctor squinted, peering down the hatch a little more. "What's down there?" He coughed, waving a hand in front of his face to clear away the smoke. "I just need to see…" He hopped up and ran to the screen in the front of the car, whirring the sonic screwdriver at the display. His brain was running like clockwork, he was full of ideas. "There must be some sort of ventilation. If I could just transmit a pulse through this thing, maybe I could trip the system, give us a bit of a breeze!"

Meanwhile, back in Valerie and Brannigan's car, both of them were sitting blankly, staring ahead at the fog. Suddenly, the ceiling creaked and sparks began to fly. "Just what we need," Brannigan shouted in a panic. "Pirates!"

"I'm calling the police!" Valerie yelled as the hatch at the top of their car fell down. Novice Hame poked her head in, holding up her gun.

"The Doctor. Martha Jones. Where are they?" She asked urgently.

The Doctor was busy playing with the wiring of the front console in the businessman's car. One of the wires snapped in his fingers, and he grinned. "That's it! Might shift the fumes a bit, give us a good look!" The three of them stared out from the bottom of the car, and they could see big… no, _huge_ snapping claws drifting out from underneath the smog. "They're _alive…_" He whispered.

"What are they?" Martha gasped as the fog cleared away even more, revealing extremely large, vicious crabs. The little lights turned out to be their eyes.

"Macra," The Doctor replied with deadly recognition. Oh, he knew them. Rose was in danger.

Rose's car was jolting more than ever, each passenger panicking. "Go faster!" Cheen cried.

"I'm at top speed!" Milo replied, obviously frustrated. The screen at the front read 'PROXIMITY WARNING', and the electronic voice simply stated that there was no access above. "But this is an emergency!" Milo cried, their car zooming through the sea of Macra, barely missing the giant crushing claws.

"Thank you for your call," The electronic voice stated rather unhelpfully. "You have been placed on hold."

"Turn everything off," Rose instructed suddenly, an idea forming in her head.

"You've got to be joking!" Milo replied with wide eyes.

"No, listen, it's all fog out there, so how can they see us?" Rose explained. "It might be the engines… the sound, the light or the heat, I don't know! Just turn everything off. They might not be able to see us."

"What if you're wrong?" Milo asked, looking fearful.

"Then I'll take the blame," Rose replied sternly. "But would you rather be sat in the dark or crushed by those things? Just turn everything off!"

Milo hesitated, but he eventually flicked off the power in the car. The vehicle grinded to a halt and they sat in darkness. No longer jolting around. No longer screaming. "They've stopped…" Cheen whispered.

"Yeah, but they're still out there…" Milo grumbled quickly, looking carefully out of the window. Cheen frowned, and turned to Rose.

"How did you think of that?" She asked, a little impressed.

"I saw it on a film," Rose shrugged. "They used to do this in submarines. To hide from their enemies… only problem is, I can't remember what they did next."

"Well, you better think of something, because we've lost the aircon," Milo stated. "If we don't switch the engines back on, we won't be able to breathe."

"How long have we got?" Rose asked, fearful of the answer.

"Eight minutes, maximum," Milo replied with a sigh. Cheen started to cry softly, and Rose took a moment just to think purely of the Doctor. She missed him. She needed him.

The Doctor was still staring down the hatch, studying the Macra carefully. "The Macra used to be the scourge of this galaxy," He explained to Martha and the businessman. "Gas. They fed off gas, the filthier the better. They built up a small empire using humans as slaves and mining gas for food."

"They don't exactly look like empire-builders now," Martha commented as she looked down at the huge crabs.

"Well, that was billions of years ago," He explained. "Billions. They must've devolved down the years and now they're just beasts. But they're still hungry and Rose is down there."

They suddenly heard a clank at the top of the car. Someone else was coming down. "Oh, it's like New Times Square in here, for goodness' sake!" The businessman muttered. Novice Hame's feet dangled down, and she lowered herself in carefully, brandishing her gun.

"I've invented a sport!" The Doctor exclaimed, looking surprised.

"Doctor, Martha. You're hard people to find," Novice Hame smiled. "You've got to come with me."

"Do I know you?" The Doctor studied her carefully. He vaguely recognised her from somewhere.

"You haven't aged at all," Novice Hame said with a sigh. "Time has been less kind to me."

"Novice Hame!" He suddenly grinned and embraced her. A pause. He suddenly remembered the hospital and he pulled away immediately. "No, hold on, get off. Last time we met, you were breeding humans for experimentation."

"I've sought forgiveness, Doctor, for so many years, under his guidance," Novice Hame explained. "And if you come with me, I might finally be able to redeem myself."

"We're not going anywhere," Martha pointed down the hatch into the deadly Macra infestation. "Rose is still stuck down there."

"I'm sorry, Doctor. Martha. But the situation is even worse than you can imagine," She took the Doctor and Martha's wrists, pressing a button on the green metal wristband she was wearing. "Transport."

"Don't you dare!" The Doctor struggled against her grip. "Don't you dare!" But it was too late, all three of them vanished in a haze of pure white light, the businessman watching in complete bewilderment.


	22. Gridlock, Chapter 4

The Doctor, Martha and Novice Hame arrived in a deserted, dusty large room, streams of sunlight flooding in irregularly, lighting up the pieces of junk scattered everywhere. The trio were picking themselves up off the floor after the bumpy ride with the teleport, the Doctor rubbing his head. "Oh! Rough teleport. Ow. But you can go straight back down and teleport people out, starting with Rose!"

"I only had the power for one trip!" Novice Hame replied with a whimper.

"Get some more!" Martha frowned and observed the empty, dusty room. "Where are we?"

"High above, in the over-city," Novice Hame informed them, pointing out of a very small window. They could see distant spires of the city outside.

"Good!" The Doctor clapped his hands. "'Cause you can tell the Senate of New New York I'd like a word. They've got thousands of people trapped on the motorway. Millions!"

"But you're inside the Senate, right now," Novice Hame gestured ahead. "May the goddess Santori bless them…" Martha and the Doctor looked up slowly at long, dusty rows of seats in a vast, magnificent chamber. Every row contained skeletons. "They died, Doctor… the city died."

"How long's it been like this?" The Doctor asked, quite shocked at the sight. He wasn't expecting this.

"Twenty-four years," Novice Hame replied wearily. They walked forward, the Doctor kneeling next to a skeleton, his anger from before completely forgotten.

"All of them?" Martha asked softly, a little disturbed at the sight of the skeletons. "Everyone? What happened?"

"A new chemical. A new mood. They called it Bliss…" Novice Hame kneeled next to the Doctor, reaching down and picking up a small circular token with the word 'BLISS' printed in large letters. "Everyone tried it. They couldn't stop. A virus mutated inside the compound and became airborne. Everything perished – even the virus, in the end. It killed the world in seven minutes flat. There was just enough time to close down the walkways and the flyovers, sealing off the under-city. Those people on the motorway aren't lost, Doctor. They were _saved_."

Martha and the Doctor were both struck with the urgency of the motorway situation. They both wanted to help. "So, the whole thing down there is running on automatic?" Martha asked.

"There's not enough power to get them out," Novice Hame explained. "We did all we could to stop the system from choking."

"Who's 'we'?" The Doctor frowned. "How did you survive?"

"He protected me," Novice Hame's expression seemed to brighten. "And he has waited for you, these long years."

A short distance away, a low grumbling voice spoke out. "Doctor."

The Doctor turned, a grin spreading over his lips when he saw… the Face of Boe! He went over and kneeled down, Martha looking at the Face of Boe curiously. "Who's that?"

"Martha Jones, meet the Face of Boe!" The Doctor exclaimed, brushing his hand up to the front of the tank.

"Back in the old days, I was made his nurse," Novice Hame explained with a smile. "As penance for my sins."

"Old friend, what happened to you?" The Doctor asked softly, peering up at the Face of Boe, their eyes meeting.

"Failing," He replied simply.

"He protected me from the virus by shrouding me in his smoke," Novice Hame sighed. "But with no one to maintain it, the City's power died. The under-city would have fallen into the sea."

"So, he saved them?" Martha looked at the Face of Boe in awe. "That's incredible."

"The Face of Boe wired himself into the mainframe…" Novice Hame smiled. "He's giving his life force just to keep things running."

"But there are planets out there," The Doctor looked up at her, frowning. "You could have called for help."

"The last act of the Senate was to declare New Earth unsafe," Novice Hame closed her eyes in sorrow. "The automatic quarantine lasts for one hundred years."

The Doctor looked up at Novice Hame, concerned, standing up slowly. "So the two of you stayed here, on your own, for all these years."

"We had no choice," She replied softly.

The Doctor reached out to her, touching her shoulder in a gesture of friendship. "Yes, you did."

"Save them, Doctor…" The Face of Boe whispered. "Save them."

Meanwhile, Rose was still standing quietly inside the stationary car, feeling a little hopeless. They were running out of air. Cheen was sniffling and rubbing her eyes. "How much air's left?"

"Two minutes," Milo replied, feeling a little light-headed.

"There's always the Doctor…" Rose whimpered at the thought of the Doctor. She missed him so much. "He'll think of something."

"Rose… no one's coming," Milo looked up at her with a sigh, completely giving up.

"He looked kind of nice," Cheen commented with a small shrug.

"Oh, he's more than that…" Rose replied, closing her eyes as she thought of the Doctor's warm hugs. She always loved his hugs.

"Are you and him…?" Cheen started, 'together' lingering on the tip of her tongue.

"Yeah…" Rose looked down at the floor. "We almost lost each other and I think that made him realise how much I mean to him. We just haven't had much of a chance to be alone together..."

Cheen nodded in understanding, another question popping into her head. "I never even asked… where's home?"

"It's a long way away," Rose replied sadly. "I don't even have a family here anymore... can't visit them… just relying on the Doctor and now he's not even here…"

"So, um, who is he, then? This Doctor?" Milo asked a little hesitantly.

"He's my best friend…" Rose murmured, sitting down carefully, her heart aching. "He's everything to me, and he'll save us. I know he will."

"How can you be sure?" Cheen asked softly. "We haven't heard anything from him."

"Oh, I'm sure," Rose looked at them both, a little determination filling her voice. "You haven't seen the things he's done. Saves planets… species… the whole universe... and he never asks to be thanked. Just trust me, both of you. You've got those beautiful hymns and songs, and I've got the Doctor."

"Right," Milo nodded, flicking the car engine back on and gripping Cheen's hand. "Good luck!"

"You too!" Rose braced herself as the Macra started to snap their claws against the car again. Milo swerved the steering wheel and managed to dodge and duck through their deadly grip. Meanwhile, the Doctor was watching the car's blip on a working monitor in the Senate.

"Car Four Six Five Diamond Six! It still registers! That's Rose. Oh, she's good. Martha, hold this in place!" He jumped back from the screen and handed her some thick tubing, hopping over it and talking at a thousand miles an hour. "Think, think, think. Take the residual energy, invert it, feed it through the electricity beds!"

"There isn't enough power!" Novice Hame sighed.

"Ah, but you've got power!" The Doctor reached a far wall with two large screens, bundles of wiring and thousands of buttons. "You've got me! I'm brilliant with computers, just you watch," He spun around with excitement and pointed at Martha. "Martha, every switch on that bank, up to maximum!"

"Yes, Doctor!" Martha carried out the Doctor's instructions, whilst Rose's car still swerved and dodged the Macra.

"I can't power up the city, but all the city needs is people!" The Doctor fiddled with a console on the floor, banging his fist against it and jumping up with extreme energy.

"So, what are you going to do?" Martha asked, moving to his side and grinning.

"This!" The Doctor grinned back at her, flipping a large switch on the floor. All of the lights on the consoles started to go out, and the Doctor's face fell. "No, no no no no, no!"

Rose yelped when the huge claws of the Macra crashed against the car. One finally caught them, the claw clamping down on the vehicle, sparks flying everywhere in the cabin. Milo was glued to the steering wheel, determined, Cheen sobbing and Rose's heart thumping in her chest. Another Macra's claw knocked against them, sending the car flying out and zooming through the sea of monsters. "Please, Doctor…" Rose whispered, closing her eyes. "_Please_…"

The Doctor sprinted down to the floor, kneeling and waving the sonic screwdriver madly at the controls. "The transformers are blocked. The signal can't get through!"

"Doctor…" The Face of Boe's voice travelled like a whisper in the wind.

"Yeah, hold on, not now," The Doctor muttered, peering through his brainy specs in concentration.

"I give you my last…" The Face of Boe let out a long, rasping breath, every console in the room springing to life, completely full of energy. Everything was completely powered. The Doctor, Martha and Novice Hame all looked around in wonder.

"Hame, look after him!" The Doctor instructed. Novice Hame went straight over to his side, Martha also kneeling down to see if she could help. "Don't you go dying on me, you big old face. You've got to see this," He flicked the huge switch on the floor again. "The open road. Hah!"

Valerie and Brannigan were sitting a little glumly in their car, when suddenly, they heard a loud crack and bang. "What in Jehovah was that?" Brannigan asked, spinning around madly.

"It's coming from above!" Valerie gasped, and rushed over to cover their mewling kittens.

"What is it?" Brannigan peered over the controls to try and get a clear look out of the window. "What's happening?" Brannigan and Valerie weren't the only people who could hear the loud banging and creaking of mechanisms. Alice and May were looking up in fear. The businessman in his car could hear it. Every single car on the motorway could hear it. Brannigan looked up in complete wonder. "By all the cats in the kingdom!" A gap was forming, up in the ceiling. Above the lanes and lanes of cars, the endless gridlock, the doors to the over-city were opening at last.

"What is it?" Valerie gasped as pure sunlight fell onto her face. Sunlight filled every single car on the motorway, everyone was squinting through the bright light. Realising. Pure joy exploded, everyone started to cheer. They were no longer trapped. They could be free. "It's the sun! Oh, Brannigan!" She pulled the blanket off of the kittens carefully. "Children, it's the sunlight!" The kittens purred happily, flooded by sunlight for the very first time.

The Doctor fiddled with the main control, buzzing his face into every single car monitor. "Sorry, no Sally Calypso, she was just a hologram. My name's the Doctor."

Rose's eyes widened when she saw the Doctor's face in the car screen, rushing forward and grinning. "Doctor!"

"He's a magician!" Brannigan gasped, laughing at the sight of the Doctor's face in his car screen.

"And this is an order! Everyone drive up," The Doctor instructed with a smile. "Right now. I've opened the roof of the motorway. Come on. Throttle those engines. Drive up. All of you, the whole under-city. Drive up, drive up, drive up! Fast! We've got to clear that fast lane. Drive up and get out of the way." All of the cars on the motorway soared up out of the fog and into the brilliant sunshine. "Oy! Car Four Six Five Diamond Six! Rose! Drive up!" He grinned.

"You heard what he said! Drive!" Rose laughed, completely elated.

"We can't go up!" Milo uttered in disbelief. "We'll hit the layer!"

"Just do as he says!" Rose jumped excitedly and pointed out of the window. It was clear up ahead. "Go up!"

"You've got access above!" The Doctor laughed. "Now go!"

The car swung free of the snapping, crushing claws of the Macra, bursting up out of the fog and heading up into the sunshine along with everyone else. Cheen, Milo and Rose all looked up at the sunlight in complete awe. "It's daylight!" Cheen gasped. "Oh my God. That's the sky, the real sky!"

"He did it!" Rose was beside herself with joy. "I told you he'd do it!"

"Did I tell you, Doctor? You're not bad, sir. You're not bad at all!" Brannigan laughed, completely elated. "Oh, yee-hah!"

"You keep driving, Brannigan, all the way up! 'Cause it's here, just waiting for you" The Doctor hopped happily over to a window, looking out at the beautiful city, full of life with cars spinning around abandoned skyscrapers, flying in the sunset. "The city of New New York. And it's yours. And don't forget, I want that coat back!"

Brannigan chuckled into his voice transmitter. "I reckon that's a fair bargain, sir."

"And Car Four Six Five Diamond Six, I've sent you a flight path," The Doctor grinned. "Come to the Senate."

"You ridiculous man," Rose beamed as she spoke into the transmitter.

"It's been a while since I saw you, Rose Tyler..." Her name rolled off his tongue so smoothly and beautifully.

"Doctor!" Martha cried. He swerved around quickly, his grin disappearing. Martha and Novice Hame were leaning desperately over the Face of Boe, as the case that enclosed him started to crack.

Rose skipped happily into the Senate room, but her happiness was a little subdued at the sight of the skeleton on the floor. "Doctor?" She called.

"Over here," The Doctor replied, turning and smiling at the sight of Rose. She ran over and hugged him tightly.

"Oh, I thought I'd never see you again..." Rose mumbled into his chest, but when she looked up at him, she noticed that he looked so sad. "What's wrong?" The Doctor simply guided her over to the Face of Boe, and her smile faded away too. "What happened to him?"

"He's the one who saved you, not me..." The Doctor knelt next to the Face of Boe with a sigh.

"My lord gave his life to save the city..." Novice Hame wept, Rose kneeling down to offer a comforting arm over her shoulder. "And now he's dying."

"No, don't say that!" The Doctor shook his head, trying to grasp some sort of hope. "Not old Boe. Plenty of life left. Legend says the Face of Boe has lived for billions of years. Isn't that right? And you're not about to give up now."

"Everything has its time..." The Face of Boe whispered. "You know that, old friend, better than most."

"The legend says more..." Novice Hame murmured with a hint of intrigue.

"Don't," The Doctor frowned. "There's no need for that."

Novice Hame ignored him and continued. "It says that the Face of Boe will speak his final secret to a traveller."

"Yeah, but not yet," hissed the Doctor, shrugging. "Who needs secrets, eh?"

"I have seen so much..." The Face of Boe whispered. "Perhaps too much. I am the last of my kind, as you are the last of yours, Doctor."

Martha frowned a little, not quite understanding. She didn't know the Doctor was the last of his kind. Rose went to the Doctor's side and hugged him gently. He looked upset, desperate almost. This death was affecting him much harder than the death of the entire planet. "That's why we have to survive. Both of us..." He murmured shakily. "Don't go."

"I must... but know this, Time Lord..." The Face of Boe drew his last breath. "You are not alone." The Doctor stared, more astounded now rather than upset. The Face of Boe closed his eyes for the very last time, Rose closing her eyes in sorrow, and Martha looking on in respect. Novice Hame wept even more. The cars outside were free, everyone else on the planet was elated. But the mood in the Senate was quite the opposite.

The Doctor, Martha and Rose eventually left and headed back down to the alley where they met the pharmacists. The entire street was deserted. "All closed down!" The Doctor looked around, quite pleased.

"Happy?" Rose smiled, holding his hand.

"Happy happy!" The Doctor replied with a grin. Rose and Martha both laughed softly, whilst he inspected one of the empty pharmacist booths. "New New York can start again. And they've got Novice Hame. Just what every city needs - cats in charge! Come on, time we were off." He began to stroll off with Rose, but Martha stayed put, frowning.

"But what did he mean, the Face of Boe?" Martha mumbled. The Doctor and Rose turned around slowly. "You are not alone. What did he mean?"

"I don't know," The Doctor shrugged.

"Did he mean..." Rose started, watching the Doctor's reaction carefully. "Did he mean your people? The Face of Boe didn't mean me and Martha, did he?"

The Doctor stared at her, not quite sure how to react. "No."

"Then, what?" Martha sighed, wanting him just to _talk_ for once.

"Doesn't matter," The Doctor replied a little coldly. "Back to the TARDIS. Off we go." As he turned away, Martha grabbed a discarded chair and pulled it out, sitting down and folding her arms stubbornly. The Doctor frowned and turned around again. "All right, you staying?"

"Till you talk properly to me, yes. Rose might already know, but I don't understand. He said "last of your kind". What does that mean?"

Rose bit her lip and stood awkwardly between the Doctor and Rose. The Doctor tried hard to appear flippant, like he didn't care. "It really doesn't matter."

"It does matter," Rose added softly. "Martha has a right to know. Can't keep her in the dark forever."

Before the Doctor could argue back, the sound of music rose around them, from high above in the city. The New New York citizens were singing another beautiful hymn. Rose and Martha listened, enchanted by the glorious sound.

"Fast falls the eventide... the darkness deepens... Lord, with me abide... when other helpers fail..."

"It's the city," Martha whispered, looking up in awe. "They're singing."

The Doctor watched Rose and Martha, frustrated. He listened to the song, sighed and admitted defeat. "I lied to you, Martha, because I liked it. I could pretend. Just for a bit, I could imagine they were still alive, underneath a burnt orange sky..." Rose looked down sadly, and gave him a gentle hug. She already knew the story. Martha looked shocked, and so sad for him. "I'm not just a Time Lord. I'm the last of the Time Lords. The Face of Boe was wrong. There's no one else."

"What happened?" Martha asked in disbelief, shaking her head slightly.

The Doctor paused, pulling up two chairs for him and Rose, both of them sitting down slowly. He lost the ability to speak for a moment, feeling overwhelmed by emotion, so Rose continued. "There was a war, and he fought... the last Great Time War..." Rose glanced at him, and gave his hand a squeeze.

"My people fought a race called the Daleks..." The Doctor continued, breathing slowly. "For the sake of all creation. And they lost. Everyone lost. They're all gone now... my family... my friends... even that sky. Oh, you should have seen it, that old planet..." Tears began to appear in his eyes. "The second sun would rise in the south, and the mountains would shine. The leaves on the trees were silver, and when they caught the light every morning, it looked like a forest on fire..." Both Rose and Martha were hanging on his every word, trying to picture such a beautiful lost planet. "When the autumn came, the breeze would blow through the branches like a song..."

The Doctor spoke so softly, and above in the city, the cars zoomed around in the golden glow of the sunset.

"The darkness deepens... Lord, with me abide."


	23. Gridlock, Epilogue

The engines of the TARDIS whirred quietly as the time machine spun idly through space. The Doctor was lying underneath the console, fiddling with the wires, giving his beloved time machine a tune up. Martha was sleeping away in her bedroom, but Rose was in her nightie and sitting in the jumpseat. She couldn't sleep, not after everything that had happened on New Earth. The Doctor hadn't realised that he wasn't alone, so he was cheerfully singing to himself. When he popped his head out from under the console, his and Rose's eyes met, and he blushed. "How long have you been there?"

"Long enough to hear you singing," Rose replied with a cheeky giggle. "I think you'd do well on the X Factor. What were you doing, anyway?"

"Oh, just giving the old girl a tune up," He wriggled out from under the console, standing and grinning. "She needed one."

Rose smiled, but it didn't quite meet her eyes. "Can we talk?"

"We're talking now!" The Doctor replied, sitting down next to her and smiling.

"No, you know what I mean," She gave him a playful nudge and sighed. "When I was kidnapped in New Earth… it made me think about us…" She looked down sadly, and he hugged her gently. "Do you really love me? You never talk... You lied to Martha earlier... do you lie to me?"

"Rose..." The Doctor sighed, running his fingers through his hair, trying to find the right words to say. "Like I said earlier, I lied to Martha because I liked it. Because I could pretend. But I'm not pretending with you..." He gazed straight into her eyes, and Rose felt like he could see every inch of her soul. "I had a lover once. A family... friends... a long time ago. I lost everyone. I _always_ lose everyone. I should travel alone... I'm not... suitable for loving... I hurt everyone I meet, that's a guarantee. I almost lost you and one day, I could lose you again. And if I don't lose you, then you'll grow old, and I'll live on. Alone. Curse of the Time Lords, remember?"

"But you can find a way to keep me young, you always do…" Rose whispered softly, reaching out to hold his hand. "There must be a way... and if you don't… I still won't leave you. You've lived for so long and you deserve to be happy, even if it's just for a while."

"Oh, Rose…" He sighed. "I'm not a god… people think I am, but I'm not… I make mistakes… and if I fail you… if I lose you… then I'll pay for the rest of my life with broken hearts. I could prolong your life. I could take you to the Fountain of Youth, and you could live _forever_… but…" He met her gaze for a second. "Would you still want me? Because I would want you. I always want you. I love you. I love you more than I've loved anyone else. You fixed me, and you gave me hope... You've stolen my hearts and you can keep them forever."

Rose felt her heart melt at his words. He was never this honest. Of course she wanted him. How could she have anyone else? "I love you."

"I love you too." He paused and moved in close, his lips meeting hers in a slow, intense kiss. His strong arms held her tight, and she gripped him in an equal embrace. She melted into his touch; the feeling of his soft lips caressing hers was heavenly. This kiss felt different to the others. This time, _he_ was willing. He was tentative, they both were, but those barriers were finally completely broken. _He _kissed _her, _not the other way around. They were opening up a whole new universe of possibilities. Even if she could love him just for a little while, mind, body and soul... it would be completely worth it.


	24. Daleks of Manhattan, Prologue

Lively jazz music filled the bright streets of New York City, lit up like a Christmas tree in the night. "NEW YORK REVUE" was printed across the marquee of a theatre in big, bright letters. Backstage, inside the theatre, a chorus girl walked briskly along a corridor, dressed in a red sparkly leotard with a matching red feather hat. "Two minutes to curtain up! Two minutes to curtain up! Where's Tallulah?"

"Where do you think?" Another chorus girl in an identical outfit rolled her eyes and smirked as she knocked on the star's dressing room door. "Hey, Tallulah! Leave him alone!" She giggled and joined the other girls as they headed to the stage.

Tallulah was in an embrace with a young man, kissing him passionately. She was beautiful, with platinum blonde hair and dainty features, dressed in a white leotard with a sparkly tiara, and fluffy fairy wings strapped to her back. "It's nearly showtime, Lazlo. I gotta go."

"Just promise me you'll come on Sunday, okay?" Lazlo was a very handsome young man, and he had a very kind tone to his voice. "My mother will kill me if she doesn't get to meet you."

"What if she doesn't like me?" Tallulah asked, her eyes big and innocent.

"Tallulah, she'll love you just as much as I do," Lazlo replied with a soft smile.

"Oh!" Tallulah giggled in excitement, beaming at him. "You say the sweetest things!"

"It's true," Lazlo held her hands and gave them a squeeze. "Now, promise me, Sunday you'll come."

"I promise," replied Tallulah with a giggle, smoothing down his collar. "Cross my heart."

"Oh, here..." Lazlo took a white rose from his waistcoat pocket, slowly handing it to her. "Wear it on stage and think of me."

Tallulah slipped the rose into the strap of her costume, and glanced at the door when a member of the crew knocked and shouted her name. "I'm comin'! Quit yellin'!" She shouted, turning back to Lazlo and giving him a twirl in her outfit. "How do I look?"

"Like an angel." He admired her fantastic figure, smiling brightly.

Tallulah beamed and shared another kiss with him, dashing out of the room, turning back to blow him a kiss as she walked up the stairs. "Wish me luck, Lazlo!"

"Break a leg, sweetheart!" Lazlo chuckled and turned back to the dressing room, hoping that his girlfriend would perform well. His happiness was distracted, however, by a mysterious figure dashing past the doorway. "Tallulah?" He peered down the hallway, but it was empty... Except for a strange movement by the prop room. Lazlo went over to investigate. He could hear a strange growling noise... "Hello?" He supposed that someone was playing a joke on him, so he stepped into the prop room slowly, to catch the misfit who was making him worried over nothing. "Who's there? Who are you?" The door suddenly slammed shut behind him. He gulped, having the strangest feeling that he was being watched. Reaching into his pocket, he took a match out and lit it, turning to be startled by an odd statue of a pirate. He chuckled and let out a sigh of relief, glancing the other way... to suddenly be attacked by an ugly, pig like creature! He let out a scream of terror, but nobody heard him...


	25. Daleks of Manhattan, Chapter 1

The TARDIS slowly materialised in front of a plain white stone wall. Rose stepped out first, followed by Martha and the Doctor. "Where are we?" Rose asked with a grin.

"Ah, smell that Atlantic breeze!" The Doctor beamed. "Nice and cold. Lovely. Ladies, have you met my friend?" He gestured up towards the Statue of Liberty, standing tall and majestic behind them.

"Is that... Oh, my God!" Martha laughed, looking up at the Statue of Liberty in awe. "That's the Statue of Liberty!"

"That's amazing!" Rose jumped up and down with excitement. "I've always wanted to go to New York! The real New York, not New New New New... oh, you get the idea."

"Gateway to the New World! 'Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to break free...'" The Doctor looked around with a grin.

"That's so brilliant," Martha gazed at the view of the Manhattan skyline. "I agree with Rose, I've always wanted to go to New York too."

"Well, there's the genuine article!" The Doctor looked at the view with admiration. "So good, they named it twice. Mind you, it was New Amsterdam originally. Harder to say twice. No wonder it didn't catch on. New Amsterdam, New Amsterdam..."

"I wonder what year it is," Rose tilted her head in curiosity, and pointed out to the skyline. "'Cause look, the Empire State Building's not even finished yet."

"Work in progress!" replied the Doctor cheerfully. "Still got a couple floors to go, and if I know my history, that makes the date somewhere around..."

"November 1st, 1930," Martha replied as she held up a discarded newspaper.

"You're getting good at this!" The Doctor turned to see the newspaper, taking it and reading it. His expression darkened, and Rose looked at him in concern.

"Eighty years ago..." Martha looked around in excitement. "It's funny, 'cause you see all those old newsreels in black and white like it's so far away... but here we are! It's real. It's now!" She laughed, and glanced at the Doctor and Rose. "Come on then, you two. Where do we go first?"

The Doctor held up the newspaper with a sigh, showing Martha the headline, which read 'HOOVERVILLE MYSTERY DEEPENS'. "I think our detour just got longer."

"Hooverville Mystery Deepens..." Rose frowned. "What's Hooverville?"

They headed over to Central Park, where the Doctor continued his explanation of Hooverville to the girls. "Herbert Hoover, 31st President of the USA, came to power a year ago," he explained as they strolled through the park. "Up till then, New York was a boom town, the Roaring Twenties, and then..."

"The Wall Street Crash, yeah?" Martha frowned. "When was that, 1929?"

"Yeah," The Doctor nodded. "Whole economy wiped out overnight. Thousands of people unemployed. Suddenly the huddled masses doubled in number with nowhere to go. So they ended up here in Central Park."

"What?" Rose looked around carefully. "They actually live in the park? In the middle of the city?"

They arrived at Hooverville, Martha and Rose looking around in shock. The entire area was filled with shacks and tents, random fire barrels placed throughout the paths. It was a slum town, slap bang in the middle of New York. "Ordinary people. Lost their jobs. Couldn't pay the rest and they lost everything..." The Doctor looked around slowly, grimly. "There are places like this all over America. You only come to Hooverville when there's nowhere else to go."

The trio suddenly looked ahead as they heard two men shouting, and fighting. "You thievin' lowlife!" The first man punched the second, while others tried to break up the fight. "My loaf!"

"I didn't touch it!" The second man tried to scramble away, clutching his jacket tightly.

Solomon, an older, dark skinned man wearing a brown hat, strode out of his tent and shouted. "Cut that out!" The two men ignored him and kept on fighting. "Cut that out!" He repeated in a louder tone, pushing the two men apart. "Right now!"

"He stole my bread!" The first man shouted, his face red and angry.

"That's enough!" Solomon raised an eyebrow at the second man. "Did you take it?"

"I don't know what happened!" The second man replied, his eyes wild with fright. "He just went crazy."

"That's enough!" Solomon shouted as the first man tried to lunge after the second. Other residents heard the commotion and were wandering over to see what was happening. The Doctor, Rose and Martha wandered over, too. "Now think real careful before you lie to me."

"I'm starvin', Solomon!" The second man sheepishly reached under his coat, pulling out the bread and handing it over to Solomon.

"We're all starvin'..." Solomon broke the bread in half, and handed each man a piece. "We all got families somewhere. No stealin' and no fightin'. You know the rules. Thirteen years ago I fought in the Great War. A lot of us did. And the only reason we got through was because we stuck together! No matter how bad things get, we still act like human beings. It's all we got."

The two men went their seperate ways, and the Doctor approached Solomon with a friendly smile. "I suppose that makes you the boss around here."

"And, uh, who might you be?" Solomon frowned.

"I'm the Doctor! This is Rose, and Martha," he gestured to his companions with a smile.

"A doctor," Solomon scoffed, warming his hands by the fire. "Well, we got, uh, stockbrokers, we got a lawyer, but you're the first doctor. Neighbourhood gets classier by the day."

"How many people live here?" Rose asked softly, glancing around at the several tents and shacks, feeling sorry for the inhabitants.

"At any one time, hundreds," Solomon replied. "No place to go. But I will say this about Hooverville. We are a truly equal society, black, white, all the same. All starving," He laughed. "So you're welcome. All three of you. But tell me, Doctor, you're a man of learning, right? Explain this to me..." He pointed up at the Empire State Building. "That there's going to be the tallest building in the world. How come they can do that, and we got people starving in the heart of Manhattan?"

High up on the Empire State Building, two construction workers were out on the girders, hoisting up a bucket on the ropes. "Right, no more!" The first worker sighed.

"There you go. Hoist!" The second man shouted over the wind.

Inside an unfinished part of the 100th floor, the site foreman was arguing with Mr. Diagoras, a suspicious-looking man with slicked-back hair, wearing a dark pinstriped suit and spats. "I'm tellin' ya, the men won't stand for it!" The foreman frowned. "I mean, are you outta your mind? I've got five hundred men working seven days a week flat out, and you want us to go faster?"

"The new masters demand it," Mr. Diagoras replied simply.

"But we're on schedule!" The foreman sighed exasperatingly. "What's the problem?"

"The mast on this building needs extra work completed by tonight."

"Tonight?!" The foreman stared at Mr. Diagoras. "No way. It's impossible!"

Mr. Diagoras turned to him slowly. "That's an order."

"Yeah? Well, one word from me and every man on this site stops working," The foreman replied angrily. "So go on. Tell your masters that."

"If that's your attitude, I think you should tell them yourself..." Mr. Diagoras stood up slowly, walking towards the lift and pressing the call button.

"Yeah, well, I ain't afraid of no man in a suit," The foreman scoffed, and paused. "These new bosses? What's their names?"

"I guess you could say they're from outta town," Mr. Diagoras replied with a smirk dancing on his lips.

"Italians?" The foreman frowned, sensing something was off.

"A bit further than that."

"How much further?"

Mr. Diagoras smirked. "Beyond your imagination."

"What's that supposed to mean?" The foreman asked angrily. "Who are they? Mr. Diagoras, who're we working for?"

Mr. Diagoras stepped away from the lift, standing beside the foreman. "Behold your masters!" The lift bell dinged and the doors slid open to reveal the blue menacing glow of a Dalek eyestalk. The bronze Dalek was guarded by two pig slaves, as it moved out of the lift slowly.

The foreman gazed at the metal creature and the two pig slaves in disgust and confusion. "What the hell?"

"I have been summoned," The Dalek stated, the light bulbs on its dome flashing. "Explain! Explain!"

"It can talk!" The foreman backed away, horrified. "How does it talk? And what the hell are they?!"

"I'm sorry, my lord," Mr. Diagoras bowed his head in respect to his master. "But this man is refusing to complete the work."

"Then we must replace him." The Dalek replied simply, in its monotone voice.

"Is anybody gonna tell me what the hell is happening here?!" The foreman turned to Mr. Diagoras nervously.

"Use him!" The Dalek cried. "Take him for the Final Experiment."

The pig slaves moved forward, grabbing the foreman by his arms. "Hey, what's goin' on?" The foreman struggled madly as they took him into the lift. "Let go! Let go of me! Get off me, ya freaks! Mr. Diagoras, will you tell 'em? Listen!" Mr. Diagoras simply stood by and watched as the lift doors slid shut.

"The Empire State Building must be completed in time!" The Dalek uttered.

"It will be," Mr. Diagoras tried to sound reassuring. "Trust me. Labour is cheap and that man can be replaced."

"The plan must not fail. The gamma strike has accelerated. We need more bodies immediately." The Dalek's eyestalk turned up to point directly at Mr. Diagoras.

"Yes, Master."


	26. Daleks of Manhattan, Chapter 2

Back at Hooverville, Solomon threw coffee dregs onto the burning fire as the Doctor, Martha and Rose approached. "So..." The Doctor began, holding the newspaper up with the headline 'Hooverville Mystery Deepens'. "Men are going missing. Is this true?"

"It's true, all right," Solomon replied, sighing as he took the newspaper and went inside his tent.

"Hold on," Rose frowned, as the three of them stood at the opening of the tent. "Men must come and go here all the time. It's not like anyone's keeping a register, right? So, how are these people going missing?"

"C'mon in," Solomon gestured to a couple of chairs, and the three of them sat down slowly. "This is different."

"In what way?" Martha frowned.

"Someone takes them," Solomon replied grimly. "At night. We hear something. Someone calls out for help. By the time we get there, they're gone. Like they vanish into thin air!"

"And you're sure someone's taking them?" The Doctor asked in a soft tone.

"Doctor, when you got next to nothing, you hold on to the little you got," Solomon replied sternly. "Your knife, blanket, you take it with you. You don't leave bread uneaten, fire still burning."

"Have you been to the police?" Rose asked gently, kindness in her tone.

"Yeah, we tried that," Solomon scoffed and shook his head. "Another deadbeat goes missing, big deal."

"So, the question is..." The Doctor paused and frowned. "Who's taking them and what for?"

Suddenly, a young man named Frank poked his head inside the tent, his eyes darting straight to Solomon. "Solomon, Mr. Diagoras is here."

Solomon paused, his expression falling. He rushed out of the tent quickly, followed by the Doctor, Rose and Martha. They approached the space where Mr. Diagoras was addressing the men of Hooverville. "I need men. Volunteers. I got a little work for you and you sure look like you can use the money."

"Yeah," Frank piqued up. "What is the money?"

"A dollar a day." The men grumbled at this, not particularly interested in such low pay.

"What's the work?" Solomon asked.

"A little trip down the sewers," Mr. Diagoras put on a convincing smile, while the Doctor studied him and the crowd. "Got a tunnel that collapsed, needs clearing and fixing. Any takers?"

"A dollar a day?" Solomon scoffed. "That's slave wage. Men don't always come back up, do they?"

"Accidents happen," Mr. Diagoras shrugged.

"What do you mean?" The Doctor suddenly asked. "What sort of accidents?"

"You don't need the work? That's fine," Mr. Diagoras replied, avoiding the question. "Anybody else?" The Doctor raised his hand, and Mr. Diagoras rolled his eyes. "Enough with the questions."

"Oh, no no no! I'm volunteering." The Doctor smiled.

Rose and Martha both raised their hand slowly, and Rose smirked at the Doctor. "If we get killed down there, I'm blaming you." The Doctor couldn't help but smirk back at her. Solomon and Frank both raised their hands, too.

The sewers were dark, damp and dreary. The men and women climbed down the entrance ladder, looking around slowly. "Turn left," Mr. Diagoras instructed. "Go about half a mile. Follow Tunnel 273. Fall's right ahead of you. You can't miss it."

"And when do we get our dollar?" Frank frowned.

"When you come back up," Mr. Diagoras replied after a pause.

"And if we don't come back up?" The Doctor asked with his eyebrows raised.

"Then I got no one to pay!" Mr. Diagoras shrugged.

"We'll be back," Solomon growled, raising his torch into Mr. Diagoras' face.

"Let's hope so," Rose muttered, clutching the Doctor's hand tightly. The others started to walk down the tunnel, but the Doctor took a moment just to stare at Mr. Diagoras. Rose gave his hand a squeeze, and he turned to smile at her.

"Right-o! Come along." He grinned at her, and she couldn't help but giggle at his sudden cheeriness.

"We just gotta stick together," Frank murmured when Rose and the Doctor had joined them again. "It's easy to get lost. It's like a huge rabbit warren. You could hide an army down here."

"So what about you, Frank?" Martha smiled, clutching her torch tightly as they all walked along the path. "You're not from around these parts, are you?"

"Oh, you could talk," Frank chuckled. "No, no, I'm from Tennessee, born and bred."

"So how come you're here?" Martha asked softly, tilting her head in curiosity.

"Uh, my daddy died..." He replied with sadness to his tone. "Mama… couldn't afford to feed us all. So, I'm the oldest, up to me to feed myself, so put on my coat, hitched up here on the railroads. There's a whole lot of runaways in camp younger than me. From all over; Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas… Solomon keeps a lookout for us. So, what about you? You're a long way from home."

"Yeah," Martha sighed. "I'm just a hitcher too."

"You stick with me, you'll be all right," Frank smiled at her, and she gave him a warm smile in return.

"So, this Diagoras bloke..." The Doctor frowned. "Who is he, then?"

"A couple of months ago, he was just another foreman..." Solomon explained. "Now it seems like he's running most of Manhattan."

"How did he manage that, then?" Rose asked softly.

"These are strange times," replied Solomon with a shrug. "A man can go from being King of the Hill to the lowest of the low overnight. It's just for some folks it works the other way 'round."

The Doctor's attention was suddenly caught by an odd sickly green blob discarded on the ground. "Whoa!" He shone his torch on the blob, crouching down beside it slowly.

"Is it radioactive, or something?" Rose asked, looking at the blob in disgust. It looked sort of like a brain, and it smelt _awful_. "It's gone off, whatever it is."

The Doctor slipped on his brainy specs and carefully picked up the slimy blob, feeling the texture of the surface, much to Martha's disgust. "And you've got to pick it up!"

"Shine your torches through it," Rose and Martha did so, and the lights passed through the blob. "Composite organic matter. Martha? Medical opinion?"

"It's not human, I know that," Martha replied, and the same look of bewilderment crossed Solomon and Frank's features.

"No, it's not. And I'll tell you something else..." The Doctor frowned. "We must be at least half a mile in and I don't see any sign of a collapse, do you? So, why did Mr. Diagoras send us down here?"

"Where are we now, Doctor?" Rose asked. "What's above us?"

"Well..." The Doctor looked up at the ceiling slowly. "We're right underneath Manhattan..."

Meanwhile, a small group of workers were gathered in Mr. Diagoras' office. "And here, the crowning glory of the Empire State Building, the mast itself!" Mr. Diagoras exclaimed as he gestured to the plans of the building. "1472 feet above New York."

"It's a beautiful thing, sir..." The first foreman replied with a smile. "And every single one of us is proud of it. My wife says it's like a, like a spire reaching into Heaven."

"Except the Gates of Heaven need a little decoration," Mr. Diagoras pointed to a couple of bronze plates, each decorated with spheres. They looked suspiciously like the bottom part of a Dalek. "These plates have got to be fixed to the mast, right to the base itself."

"That's okay," The foreman nodded. "That's not too bad. Shouldn't take too long."

"But the work has got to be finished tonight."

"What?" The foreman's eyes widened. "Are you trying to kill us? We're flat out up here! C'mon!"

"Don't argue with me!" Mr. Diagoras shouted.

"But sir, a man can't work up there at night," The foreman explained. "It's freezing. Your hands go numb, you lose your grip, you fall."

"You don't get it," Mr. Diagoras snarled. "If you won't work…I can replace you like _that_!" He snapped his fingers, and after a pause, the foreman gave in and nodded. "Now take those panels and get going."

One of the other men walked forward and picked up a panel. It was heavier than he expected, and he frowned. "What sort of metal is this anyway?"

"Don't ask questions, just go!" Mr. Diagoras ordered. Each man took a panel and filed out of the room. "And I don't care how cold it is, how tired you are, just get out there and finish the job!"

As soon as the men left, a Dalek popped out of the lift. "The conductor must be complete for our plan to succeed."

"Unemployment is such an incentive," Mr. Diagoras chuckled. "It'll get done, don't worry."

They both moved to an exposed section of the floor, overlooking the breathtaking view of the city. "Daleks have no concept of worry," The Dalek stated.

"Yeah?" Mr. Diagoras shrugged. "Well, lucky you."

"This day is ending," The Dalek uttered, observing the skyline. "Humankind is weak. You shelter from the dark. And yet, you have built all this."

"That's progress," Mr. Diagoras explained. "Ya gotta move with the times or you get left behind."

"My planet is gone, destroyed in a great war," Mr. Diagoras almost felt_ sorry_ for the Dalek. "Yet versions of this city strand throughout history. The human race always continues."

"We've had wars," Mr. Diagoras murmured. "I've been a soldier myself. I swore then I'd survive, no matter what."

"You have rare ambition," The Dalek said after a moment, turning its eyestalk up to Mr. Diagoras' face.

"I'm gonna run this city, whatever it takes, by any means necessary!"

"You think like a Dalek."

Mr. Diagoras paused, not sure whether to be pleased with that comparison or not. "I'll take that as a compliment."

Meanwhile, inside the laboratory, Dalek Sec and two other Daleks were watching the exchange on a screen. "This human is our best option," Dalek Sec uttered. "Bring him to me."

"Your loyalty will be rewarded," The Dalek in floor 100 cried. "Come with me." It turned and headed towards the lift, and Mr. Diagoras followed slowly, looking curious.

"Prepare the laboratory," Dalek Sec ordered. "The Final Experiment will begin."

"Where are we going?" Mr. Diagoras shifted awkwardly in the lift.

"You have been summoned by our leader," The Dalek replied.

"Oh, and about time too," chuckled Mr. Diagoras, but he couldn't help but feel anxious. The lift doors opened to reveal the laboratory, filled with various pieces of Dalek machinery and scientific equipment. He slipped on a pair of black leather gloves as he slowly walked further into the room, looking nervously at the pig slaves who were watching from the sides.

"I bring you the human!" The Dalek cried.

"I take it…you're in charge?" Mr. Diagoras asked as he greeted the black Dalek.

"Correct. I am Dalek Sec, leader of the Cult of Skaro."

"Then, my lord Sec, I am honoured to meet you," Mr. Diagoras replied. "Ever since you first made contact with me, transmitting your thoughts into the corners of my mind, tempting me with such images, such ideas…Oh, sir, I'd always dreamt that the—"

"Cease talking!"

Mr. Diagoras frowned. "I just wanna let you know how grateful I am—"

"I said cease. Slaves, secure the human."

"But you don't need to do that! I'm on your side," The pig slaves secured him, and he struggled madly. "I'm working with you! I'm your partner!"


	27. Daleks of Manhattan, Chapter 3

Solomon bravely led the way through the murky sewers, followed by the Doctor, Rose, Martha and Frank. "We're way beyond half a mile..." Solomon murmured slowly, pointing his torch ahead. "There's no collapse, nothing."

"That Diagoras bloke, was he lying?" Rose asked, wrinkling her nose at the disgusting smell of the sewers.

"Looks like it," The Doctor confirmed.

"So, why did he want people to come down here?" asked Frank as he peered around warily.

"Solomon, I think it's time you took these three back," the Doctor murmured, and Rose frowned at him. "I'll be much quicker on my own."

"I'm not leaving without you," Rose murmured, but before she could say anything else, their attention was caught by the shrill sound of an animal squealing in the distance.

"What the hell was that?" Solomon cried.

"Hello?!" Frank called out, looking worried.

"Shh!" Martha hissed.

"What if it's one of the folk gone missing?" argued Frank. "You'd be scared, half-mad down here on your own."

The Doctor watched Frank carefully. "Do you think they're still alive?"

"Heck, we ain't seen no bodies down here," Frank pointed out. "Maybe they just got lost."

They all swerved around, looking in all directions as they could hear more squealing noises... but they couldn't see the source. "I know I never heard nobody make a sound like that," Solomon muttered, as the Doctor walked ahead of them, Rose and Martha following quickly.

"Sounds like there's more than one of 'em..." Frank murmured uneasily.

"This way," The Doctor pointed ahead.

Solomon frowned, glancing back and shining his torch down another tunnel. "No, that way!" He had noticed a huddled figure on the ground, and approached it slowly. "Who are you?"

"Oh, my god..." Rose gasped as she saw the huddled figure, and gently tugged the Doctor's coat. "Doctor, look..." He turned, looking at the huddled figure grimly.

"Are you lost?" Frank asked kindly. "Can you understand me? I've been thinkin' about folk lost…" Frank stepped closer, but the Doctor held him back.

"It's all right, Frank," The Doctor murmured. "Just stay back. Let me have a look..." He stepped towards the figure. "He's got a point, though, my mate Frank. I'd hate to be stuck down here on my own..." The creature squealed. "We know the way out. Daylight. If you want to come with us..." He crouched and shone the torch on the pig slave's face, gazing at his features. "Oh, but what are you?"

"Is, uh, that some kind of carnival mask?" Solomon asked, looking deeply disturbed.

"No, it's real," The Doctor murmured softly, and looked at the pig slave sympathetically. "I'm sorry. Now listen to me. I promise I can help," Shadows fell on the wall behind him, but he didn't notice. "Now, who did this to you?"

"Doctor!" Rose gasped as she noticed more of the pig slaves filling the opposite end of the tunnel.

"Doctor, I think you'd better get back here," Martha warned warily. "Doctor!"

"Actually…" The Doctor stood and backed towards the others, his eyes wide at the sight of the pig slaves. "Good point".

"They're following you!" Martha noted with a gasp as the pig slaves moved forward.

"Yeah, I noticed that, thanks," He rolled his eyes and faced them. "Well then, Rose, Martha, Frank, Solomon…"

"What?" Rose asked with wide eyes.

"Um, basically… RUN!" He took Rose's hand and they all raced down the tunnel, the pig slaves squealing as they chased after fresh meat. The others reached a cross-section, where Martha stopped in confusion.

"Where are we going?!" She asked desperately.

"This way!" The Doctor dashed to his right, and the others followed quickly, being closely chased by the pig slaves. They reached the mouth of a joining tunnel, and the Doctor spotted a ladder, sprinting towards it. "There's a ladder!" He climbed it and used the sonic screwdriver on the lid above, sliding it across and climbing up into the room above. Rose and Martha followed him up the ladder, but Solomon hesitated as he watched Frank pick up a metal rod, to try and hold the pig slaves off.

"Frank!" Solomon shouted as he climbed up into the room. The others were safe above, so Frank dropped the metal rod and ran towards the ladder, climbing up quickly. The Doctor and Solomon both reached out to grab him. "C'mon, Frank! C'mon!"

"I've got ya!" The Doctor shouted in a panicky tone. "C'mon!" The pig slaves were close enough to Frank, and they pulled him out of the Doctor's grasp, down into the sewer. "NO!"

Solomon suddenly shoved the Doctor aside, closing the lid before the pig slaves joined them. "We can't go after him."

"We gotta go back down!" The Doctor shouted, his eyes wide and wild. "We can't just leave him!"

"No! I'm not losing anybody else!" Solomon argued. "Those creatures were from Hell! From _Hell_ itself!" Nobody in the room had noticed that someone was approaching, with a gun. "If we go after them, they'll take us all! There's nothing we can do. I'm sorry."

"He's right, Doctor..." Rose murmured sadly as she placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "If we go back down there, we'll be killed."

Tallulah suddenly stepped out from behind a shelf in the prop room, pointing a gun towards them. "All right then! Put 'em up," They all turned to face her, looking bewildered as they put their hands up. Tallulah cocked the gun and frowned. "Now tell me, you schmucks, what've you done with Lazlo?"

"Uh, who's Lazlo?" Martha asked with a frown. Tallulah led them all to her dressing room, still pointing the gun at them. "Lazlo's my boyfriend, or was my boyfriend until two weeks ago. No letter, no good-bye, no nothin'. And I'm not stupid! I know some guys are just pigs but not my Lazlo. I mean, what kinda guy asks you to meet his mother before he vamooses?"

"It might, might just help if you put that down," The Doctor eyed the gun nervously.

"Huh?" She realised what he meant, and tossed the gun over to a chair. "Oh, c'mon. It's not real. It's just a prop. It was either that or a spear."

"What do you think happened to Lazlo?" Rose frowned gently.

"I wish I knew. One minute he's there, the next, zip," Tallulah sighed sadly. "Vanished!"

"Listen, ah—what's your name?" The Doctor asked.

"Tallulah."

"Tallulah?" he repeated slowly.

"3 Ls and an H." She replied, rolling her eyes.

"Right. Um, we can try to find Lazlo, but he's not the only one," The Doctor explained. "There are people disappearing every night."

"And there are creatures..." Solomon shuddered. "Such creatures."

"Whaddaya mean, creatures?" Tallulah asked slowly, looking apprehensive.

"Look. Listen, just trust me," The Doctor murmured. "Everyone is in danger. I need to find out exactly what _this_ is..." He removed the slimy blob from his pocket, examining it carefully, Tallulah eyeing it with disgust. "Because then I'll know exactly what we're fighting." He dashed over to the props room, scavenging for pieces of equipment.

"How about this?" Rose asked after rummaging around, holding up a radio. "I found it backstage."

"Perfect!" The Doctor exclaimed in delight, kissing her forehead and taking the radio. "It's the capacitors I need. I'm just rigging up a crude little DNA scan for this beastie. If I can get a chromosomal reading, I'll find out where it's from." He took out the sonic screwdriver, scanning the inside of the radio.

"How about you, Doctor?" Solomon murmured. "Where are you from? I've been all over. I've never heard anybody talk like you. Just exactly who are you?"

"Oh, I'm just sort of passing by," The Doctor replied as he took out a piece from the radio, blowing on it.

"I'm not a fool, Doctor," Solomon replied patiently.

"No," he shook his head in reply, and looked up at him slowly. "Sorry."

Solomon walked over to the sewer lid, looking down at it grimly. "I was so scared, Doctor. I let them take Frank 'cause I was just too scared. I gotta get back to Hooverville. With these creatures on the loose, we gotta protect ourselves. Ain't no one else gonna help us."

"Good luck," Rose murmured, giving him a friendly smile.

"Thanks, sweet. Doctor, I hope you find what you're looking for. For all our sakes." He let out a weary sigh, leaving the prop room slowly.

Meanwhile, Tallulah was sitting at her dressing table, putting on her makeup for her performance. Martha watched with a smile. "Lazlo… He'd wait for me after the show, walk me home like I was a lady. He'd leave a flower for me on my dressing table. Every day, just a single rose..."

Martha stood, approaching her slowly. "Haven't you reported him missing?"

"Sure," she shrugged in response. "He's just a stagehand. Who cares? The management certainly don't."

"Can't you kick up a fuss or something?" Martha suggested, trying to be helpful. Tallulah could only sigh.

"Okay, so then they fire me."

"But they'd listen to you!" Martha pointed out. "You're one of the stars."

"Oh, honey, I got one stone in a back street revue and that's only because Heidi Chicane broke her ankle—which had nothin' to do with me whatever anybody says," Tallulah looked at herself glumly in the mirror. "I can't afford to make a fuss. If I don't make this month's rent, then before you know it, I'm in Hooverville."

"Okay," Martha sighed. "I get it."

"It's the Depression, sweetie," she smiled weakly, on the verge of tears. "Your heart might break, but the show goes on and if it stops, you starve. Every night I have to go out there, sign, dance, keep goin'. Hoping he's gonna come back..." She hid her face in her hands and started to sob.

"I'm sorry," Martha mumbled, giving Tallulah a hug. She eventually pulled out of it and wiped her eyes.

"Hey, you're lucky, though. You got yourself a forward thinking guy with that hot potato in the sharp suit."

"Uh, he's not—we're not…together," Martha mumbled, a little embarrassed.

"Really? Oh, he's with the blonde girl, huh? It's a shame... I've seen the way you look at him."

"Yeah, well..." Martha sighed and shook her head. "I'll never have a chance."

"Still, ya gotta live in hope," Tallulah smiled. "It's the only thing that's kept me going 'cause…" She lifted a white rose from the dressing table. "Look! On my dressing table, every day still!"

Martha took the rose and frowned. "You think it's Lazlo?"

"I don't know," she sighed. "If he's still around, why's he bein' all secret like he doesn't want me to see him?"

Meanwhile, Solomon had finally reached Hooverville, and was addressing the crowds. "The stories are all true. People are being taken. We lost Frank today. He was stolen from right in front of me. But no more. I swear to you, no more. Now, I made a pledge that this place would be a peaceful place, but now it's time to take up arms!"

"Yeah!" The crowd roared in response.

"We need weapons. We need sentries on duty. We need men prepared to fight!" Solomon shouted. "We've got to protect ourselves because you know no one else will. Now get moving. Arm yourselves!"

The men were inspired by Solomon's words, and they went off to follow his instructions. Meanwhile, two men were attaching the plates to the mast on top of the Empire State Building. The wind was howling harshly around them, bitterly cold and nipping at their skin.

"I can't feel my fingers!" The first worker cried. "We can't stay here for much longer! We'll fall!"

"C'mon, we're nearly done!" The second worker shouted in reply.

Inside the Dalek lab, Dalek Sec moved forward slowly, while Mr. Diagoras struggled against the pig slave's grip.

"The chromatin solution is ready!" Dalek Thay exclaimed.

"Then our preparations are complete." Dalek Sec stated.

"What are you doing?" Mr. Diagoras struggled madly, eyes wide with fear. "Preparations for what?"

"This is the Final Experiment." Dalek Sec replied simply.

"Whaddya mean? Do you mean like this pig men things? You're not gonna turn me into one of those!" Mr. Diagoras felt tears springing into his eyes. "Oh, God, please don't!"

"The pig slaves are primitive," replied Dalek Sec. "The Final Experiment is greater by far."

"But how does that involve _me?_"Mr. Diagoras whimpered.

"We need your flesh! Bring him to me!"

"Halt!" Dalek Thay interrupted. "This action contradicts the Dalek Imperative."

"Daleks are supreme," Another Dalek uttered. "Humans are weak."

"But there are millions of humans and only four of us," Dalek Sec pointed out. "If we are supreme, why are we not victorious? The Cult of Skaro was created by the Emperor for this very purpose. To imagine new ways of survival."

"But we must remain pure." argued Dalek Thay.

"No, Dalek Thay! Our purity has brought us to extinction! We must adapt to survive. You have all made sacrifices..." One of the Daleks had sacrificed its side panels for the mast. "And now I will sacrifice myself for the greater cause, the future of Dalek-kind. Now bring me the human!"

"I don't understand. What do you mean? Get offa me!" Mr. Diagoras shouted as the pig slaves shoved him forward, looking at Dalek Sec in horror.

"Behold the true Dalek form!" Dalek Sec cried as its casing opened up, to reveal the Dalek mutant inside. The true form was disgusting, it had several slimy tentacles and a pulsating brain, and it was wired up to the Dalek shell. "Now you join with me."

"No! Get off me! I did everything you asked of me! No!" Mr. Diagoras struggled madly and tried to resist, but the pig slaves were too strong, and he was shoved forward into Dalek Sec's slimy grip. The tentacles wrapped around Mr. Diagoras, sucking him in like a cocoon, and squashing him in as the casing closed, trapping him inside.


	28. Daleks of Manhattan, Chapter 4

_Author's Note: I'm sorry if I've upset anybody by not updating regularly. I've had an anonymous reviewer become annoyed with me and I can't personally reply to them, so this is a message for that person, and everybody else too. I started college in September and I'm doing three different courses so obviously, I have heaps of work to do, and this story isn't my top priority right now. Sorry, again._

* * *

><p>Inside the theatre, the Doctor and Rose were sitting close together up in the balcony. They had the green slimy blob hooked up to the Doctor's hand-made scanner, and one of the stage lights were positioned to shine on it. "That's it. Let's warm you up," The Doctor put on his brainy specs and started to examine the blob.<p>

"Doctor, what is it?" Rose frowned, wrinkling her nose in disgust.

"This is artificial," He replied grimly as he felt the texture of the blob. "Genetically engineered. Whoever this is, oh, you're _clever._"

"Girls, it's showtime!" Tallulah shouted to her fellow performers, preparing for her show backstage.

Suddenly, an announcer sounded over the speakers. "Ladies and gentlemen... with Heaven and Hell!" The velvet red curtains parted to reveal the chorus girls wearing beautiful red sequinned dresses, holding large feather tails. They move aside to reveal Tallulah, appearing in her white sparkly leotard with fluffy wings and a tiara. She sashayed up to the microphone and began to sing.

"You lured me in with your cold grey eyes... Your simple smile and your bewitching lies... One and one and one is three... My bad, bad angel, the Devil and me... You put the devil in me... You put the devil in me... You put the devil in me..." Martha was watching with a smile from the wings. "You put the Devil in me!"

As the girls started to dance on stage, Martha spotted a pig slave, who looked a little different from the others, standing in the opposite wing and watching the performance. With a brave face, Martha started to cut across the stage, hiding behind the dancing girls.

"What are you doing?" One chorus girl asked, looking at Martha in horror. She shrugged and tried to move across the stage, but she accidently stepped on one of the girl's feather tails, causing her to fall.

"You're on my tail! Get off my tail!" The second chorus girl flailed as she tried to steady herself.

Tallulah glanced to see what the commotion was all about. She noticed Martha and her eyes widened. "What are you doing?"

Meanwhile, Rose and the Doctor hadn't noticed the commotion, the Doctor was busy holding a stethoscope onto the blob. "Fundamental DNA type 467-989. 989. Hold on, that means planet of origin," He mumbled, and a look of pure disbelief crossed his face. "Skaro."

"Wait, like the _Cult of Skaro_?" Rose gasped, her eyes widening. "...Daleks?" The Doctor simply looked at her grimly, and confirmed her worst nightmare.

"Get off the stage! You're spoilin' it!" Tallulah hissed to Martha, looking quite annoyed.

"But look!" She desperately pointed to the wings. "Over there!" The pig slave realised that he'd been spotted, looking startled. Tallulah let out a scream and he fled, with Martha chasing him. "Hey! Wait! But you're different than the others! Just wait!" She ran into the prop room, and she could hear a clanging noise, but the pig slave had disappeared.

Meanwhile, Tallulah was comforting the girls backstage. "It was like something out of a movie show," One of the chorus girls wept. "Oh, that face. I ain't never gonna sleep."

The Doctor and Rose both arrived, looking distraught. "Where is she? Where's Martha?" The Doctor asked quickly.

"I don't know!" Tallulah replied frightfully. "She ran off the stage."

In the prop room, another pig slave crept up behind Martha and attacked her. She let out a loud scream, and the Doctor turned his head towards the noise. "Come on!" He shouted as he ran off, followed by Rose and Tallulah. They reached the prop room, but she was gone. "Martha!" He noticed the sewer lid was a little crooked, so he grabbed his coat and put it on.

"Oh, where are you goin'?" Tallulah asked with a raised eyebrow.

"They've taken her," He replied as he moved the sewer lid aside.

"I'm coming with you," Rose muttered. "And before you say it's too dangerous, I don't care. I won't be left behind."

The Doctor paused, slowly nodding and holding her hand. "Right. Okay. But stay with me at all times, okay? Don't want to lose you down there.

"Who's taken her?" Tallulah asked as she watched the pair climbing down into the sewer. "What're y' doin'? I said, what the hell are ya doin'? Crazy." She found a long coat and wore it over her costume, climbing down the ladder slowly.

"No, no, no, no, no way. You're not coming!" The Doctor uttered with wide eyes.

"Tell me what's going on." Tallulah demanded with a serious face.

"There's nothing you can do," replied the Doctor, shaking his head. "Go back."

"Look, whoever's taken Martha, they could've taken Lazlo, couldn't they?"

"Tallulah, you're not safe down here."

"Nobody's safe," Rose muttered. "But that doesn't stop us from coming with you."

"Exactly. If I'm in trouble, that's my problem," Tallulah shrugged. "Come on. Which way?"

The Doctor admitted defeat and turned down a tunnel, clutching Rose's hand tightly. "This way."

Meanwhile, Martha struggled in the grip of two vicious pig men. "No! Let me go!" She yelped as they pushed her against a wall. More pig men arrived, shepherding a group of humans along, one of who is Frank.

"Martha!" Frank spotted her, and a wide grin spread across his features.

"You're alive!" Martha gasped and hugged him tightly, feeling so relieved. "I thought we'd lost you." One of the pig men pushed them rudely. "All right! All right, we're moving."

"Wait. Where are they taking us?" Frank glanced around. They seemed to be moving further and further into the tunnels.

"I don't know, but we can find out what's going on down here."

Meanwhile, the Doctor, Rose and Tallulah were exploring a different set of tunnels. "When you say 'They've taken her', who's they exactly?" Tallulah asked, feeling nosy. "And who are you both anyway? I never asked."

"Shh." The Doctor hushed her.

"Okay," Tallulah rolled her eyes and Rose gave her a smile. "Okay. I mean you're handsome and all—"

"Shh, shh, shh!" He was listening out for something. A shadow was approaching them. The shadow of a Dalek. He quickly pulled both girls back into a recess. The Dalek passed by without noticing them.

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no," The Doctor uttered. His voice was full of anger and resentment. "They survived. They always survive while I lose everything."

"Didn't lose me," Rose murmured softly, and the Doctor calmed as she planted a soft kiss to his cheek. "Remember that."

"That metal thing?" Tallulah gazed at the pair in confusion. "What was it?"

"It's called a Dalek," Rose uttered quietly, her face grim. "And it's the most horrible creature in the universe."

"It's not just metal, it's alive," The Doctor added and held Rose's hand tightly.

Tallulah laughed at the pair of them. They were crazy! "You're kidding me."

"Does it look like I'm kidding?" The Doctor turned to her, his eyes blazing with quiet fury. Tallulah sobered and couldn't keep her gaze. "Inside that shell is a creature born to hate, whose only thought is to destroy everything and everyone that isn't a Dalek too. It won't stop until it's killed every human being alive."

"But if it's not a human being," Tallulah began. "That kinda implies it's from outer space..." She waited for a reply from either the Doctor or Rose, but they both just stared at her. "Yet again, that's a no with the kidding. Boy… Well, what's it doin' here, in New York?"

"Stop the process! Dalek Sec is failing!" One of the Daleks cried, as they surrounded Dalek Sec in the lab.

"No. The. Experiment. Must. Continue!" Dalek Sec replied with an almost strained drone. Smoke emitted from its casing. "Administer the solution. We must evolve. Evolve! Evolve!"

A second Dalek injected a green liquid solution through Dalek Sec's casing. Meanwhile, the Doctor, Rose and Tallulah turned a corner in the sewer, and came face to face with one of the pig slaves; the one in the theatre. Tallulah let out a wail while the Doctor cornered the pig slave, with Rose by his side. "Where's Martha? What have you done with her? What have you done with Martha?"

"I didn't take her!" The pig slave replied. He seemed different than the others. Less wild.

"Can you remember your name?" Rose asked softly, seeming surprised. The other pig slaves didn't talk.

"Don't look at me," The pig slave mumbled and tried to hide his face.

"Do you know where she is?" Tallulah asked, stepping forward slowly to join the others.

"Stay back!" The pig slave growled. "Don't look at me!"

"What happened to you?" Rose murmured, as they moved closer. They could start to see his facial features. He was more of a human than a pig, but he still had a huge snout. He had tears in his eyes, too.

"They made me a monster."

"Who did?" The Doctor asked, as he examined the pig slave's face.

"The masters."

"The Daleks..." Rose reached forward to place a comforting arm on the pig slave's shoulder, feeling sorry for him. "Why would they do that?"

"They needed slaves," The pig slave explained. "They needed slaves to steal more people so they created us. Part animal, part human. I escaped before they got my mind, but it was still too late."

"Do you know what happened to Martha?" The Doctor asked with a tone of urgency.

"They took her. It's my fault," The pig slave sighed. "She was following me."

"Were you in the theatre?" Tallulah seemed to recognise him from somewhere else... but she wasn't really sure. He just seemed so familiar. The pig slave nodded and she frowned at him. "Why? Why were you there?"

"I never wanted you to see me like this," The pig slave mumbled.

"Why me? What do I gotta do with this?" Tallulah asked with a tone of irritation. "Were you following me? Is that why you were there?"

"Yes," He turned around slowly to face her.

"Who are you?" She snapped, growing impatient.

"I was lonely," The pig slave mumbled. Rose and the Doctor stepped back a little to watch the pair, looking worried.

"Who are you?"

"I needed to see you," He started, but Tallulah interrupted.

"_Who are you?_"

"I'm sorry." The pig slave turned away, trying to hold back the tears.

"No, wait," Tallulah's voice softened as she took his arm. "Let me look at you..." She turned him around and placed him under the light, studying his face. "Lazlo?" The pig slave nodded slowly. "My Lazlo?" She looked at him in horror. "Oh, what have they done to you?"

"I'm sorry. So... so sorry," Lazlo turned, trying to hide his shame.

"Lazlo, can you show me where they are?" The Doctor murmured slowly. Lazlo was shaking his head, so the Doctor placed a comforting hand on his shoulder. "If I don't stop them, they'll kill everyone."

Lazlo sighed after a moment. "...Then follow me."

Meanwhile, Martha, Frank and the other prisoners were being held in a section of the tunnel by the pig slaves. Frank nudged Martha and whispered. "What are they keeping us here for?"

"I don't know," Martha frowned, crossing her arms. "I've just got a nasty feeling that we're being kept in the larder."

Lazlo led the Doctor, Rose and Tallulah through a network of tunnels, until they reached Martha and Frank. They hid behind the corner, and listened as suddenly, the pig slaves started to panic and squeal. "What're they doing?" Frank asked in confusion. "What's wrong? What's wrong?"

A Dalek slowly entered the tunnel, the source of the pig slaves' distress. "Silence! Silence!"

"What the hell is that?!" Martha asked in surprise at the sight of the weird metal creature in front of her. The Doctor just watched from around the corner, with a serious look in his eyes.

"You will form a line! Move!" The Dalek ordered, and the pig slaves slowly pushed everyone into a single line.

"Just do what it says, everyone, okay?" Martha frowned as a pig slave pushed her into the line. "Just obey."

"The female is wise. Obey!" The Dalek's eyestalk spun around, as a second Dalek entered the tunnel.

"Report."

"These are strong specimens. They will help the Dalek cause."

Martha frowned. She'd heard that name before from somewhere... "Dalek?"

"What is the status of the Final Experiment?" The first Dalek uttered, completely focused on the mission at hand.

"The Dalekanium is in place," The second Dalek replied. "The energy conductor is now complete."

"Then I will extract prisoners for selection!" One of the pig slaves brought an older man forward. The Dalek extended its sucker, towards the man's face. "Intelligence scan. Initiate. Reading brain waves. Low intelligence."

"You calling me stupid?" The old man asked, looking offended.

"This one will become a pig slave!" The Dalek turned to the pig slaves, and they slowly pulled the old man away.

"No, let go of me! I'm not becoming one of them!" He cried, as the pig slaves took him away. The Dalek had started to move up to the next person in line.

"They're divided into two groups," Lazlo muttered to Tallulah, the Doctor and Rose. "High intelligence and low intelligence. The low intelligence are taken to become pig slaves like me."

"Well, that's not fair!" Tallulah scowled at the Dalek and whispered to Lazlo. "You're the smartest guy I ever dated."

"And the others?" Rose asked softly. "What happens to the people with high intelligence?"

"They're taken to the laboratory," Lazlo replied, with fear in his eyes.

"But why?" The Doctor scratched his head, deep in thought. "What for?"

"I don't know. The masters only call it the Final Experiment..." Lazlo explained, while the Dalek scanned Frank.

"Superior intelligence!" The Dalek spun around to Martha. "Intelligence scan. Initiate. Superior intelligence. This one will become part of the Final Experiment."

"You can't just experiment on people!" Martha shouted. "It's insane! It's inhuman!"

"We are not human," The Dalek simply uttered in return. "Prisoners of high intelligence will be taken to the transgenic laboratory."

"Look out, they're moving!" The Doctor took Rose by the waist, flattening against the wall, while Lazlo took Tallulah's hand and headed down the tunnel.

"Doctor. Rose!" Lazlo hissed. "Quickly!"

"I'm not going," The Doctor shook his head. "I've got an idea. You go," He glanced at Rose. "It might be dangerous. You should go with them."

"Oh, I'm not going anywhere, mister," Rose gripped his arm tightly, and he smiled. "You're stuck with me."

"Can you remember the way?" Lazlo asked as he turned to Tallulah.

"Yeah, I think so," She nodded urgently.

"Then go," He begged. "Please."

"But Lazlo..." Tallulah gazed at him in confusion. "You gotta come with me."

"Where would I go? Tallulah, I'm beggin' you, save yourself. Just run," He planted a soft kiss to the back of her hand. "Just go. Go!" Tallulah nodded tearfully and ran off, while Lazlo rejoined the Doctor and Rose. The Daleks passed by, and the Doctor took the chance to fall in line between Frank and Martha. Rose managed to join the line at the same time, while Lazlo acted as one of the guards.

"I'm so glad to see you," Martha whispered.

"Yeah, well, you can kiss me later," The Doctor joked. "You too, Frank, if you want," He glanced at Rose and they shared a smirk. "Not sure about you."

"Cheeky," Rose muttered and planted a quick kiss to his lips. They were all eventually brought into the Dalek lab.

"Report!" A Dalek uttered.

Another Dalek turned around. "Dalek Sec is in the final stage of evolution."

"Scan him," The first Dalek replied. "Prepare for birth."

"Evolution?" The Doctor mused.

"What's wrong with old Charlie boy over there?" Rose muttered as she glanced at Dalek Sec.

"Ask them," He replied with a shrug.

"Me? Don't be daft, that's your job," She replied with a frown.

"I don't exactly want to get noticed," He explained. "You'll be okay, I promise. Ask them what's going on."

Rose sighed, and took a deep breath. "Daleks! I demand to be told. What is this... Final Experiment? Report!"

"You will bear witness!" The Dalek replied. "This is the dawn of a new age."

"What does that mean?" Rose asked, now looking fearful.

"We are the only four Daleks so the species must evolve a life outside the shell," The Dalek stated. "The Children of Skaro must walk again."

Dalek Sec's shell powered down, and the casing opened slowly, to reveal a hideous creature. Half human, half Dalek hybrid. It had scaly, discoloured skin with one eye, and several tentacles. It stood tall, wearing Mr. Diagoras's clothes. "What is it?" Rose asked in terror, and the Doctor held her hand tightly as Dalek Sec hissed at them.

"I am a human Dalek. I am your future."


End file.
